"Push" Chord Symbols
Is there a way to notate that a chord symbol coming on the downbeat of a measure should actually be "pushed" and played slightly before the beat as a pickup? In the example below, A7 is placed on the final eighth note beat of the measure with the E natural half note. In practice the chord should really be played on the final 16th note beat in the same measure - halfway between where it is written and the downbeat of the next measure. For simplicity's sake I would like to write it as the downbeat of the following measure (over the eighth rest) and have it marked that it should be played early. Is there a standard notation for that? I've seen it written in Nashville Number Charts as a checkmark above the chord, but not sure about "official notation standard". If so, is that a symbol that will have an effect on Midi playback?
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Comments
I don't know about proper notation, but you can make it play correctly by using the appropriate shortcuts to move from the previous chord. Use ctrl+# to advance the input cursor a certain number of beats. # is the number you press for a note duration. So ctrl+6 will move the cursor 2 beats and ctrl+3 will move it a 1/16th note.
In reply to I don't know about proper… by mike320
Makes sense! Is ctrl+2 a 32nd note and so on...?
In reply to Makes sense! Is ctrl+2 a… by jacobsamuel24
Yes.
There isn't much an official standard for lead sheets, but as someone who has worked professionally editing charts for a popular fakebook, I can tell you we wouldn't have been comfortable with this because it's not specific enough. I mean, we can all see that you want the chord played before the downbeat, but when, exactly? So if there was no melody note to line it up with, we would use rhythmic slash notation above the staff to make it clear it is exactly a sixteenth before the downbeat.