Rhythm Notation
As well as traditional music notation and tablature, music sometimes uses rhythm notation. With this type of notation the music is written in a similar manner to traditional notation, except that the notes have a diagonal line instead of a notehead. This tells you that instead of playing individual notes, either the guitar or the keyboard will be playing chords with a specific rhythm pattern. The names of the chords to be played are written above the notation. An example of rhythm notation is shown here.
As mentioned earlier, once you know the notes which make up chords, you can use any inversion or fingering you know to play them. This may involve re-arranging the order of the notes or doubling some of the notes, but as long as the chord you are playing contains only the three note names involved in that particular chord, you are still playing the right chord. The following example demonstrates a common progression in the key of C. By analyzing the progression in terms of chord numbers, it is easy to transpose to other keys or move to other inversions. This progression would be described as I III IV V III VI II V.
