506 – [Daniel Glass Show]: How to Read Charts
In this podcast, Daniel discusses why charts are an important tool in making a musician’s life easier and more successful, and how they can do the same for you, even if you don’t read music.
What’s covered in this session:
- Some common fears and objections that drummer have when it comes to learning to read music and implement charts.
- Four key benefits from working with charts:
- They provide a VISUAL way of understanding music.
- They eliminate the need to memorize music, which can be time consuming and unreliable.
- They can help to clarify our understanding of rhythm in general, by forcing us to precisely articulate our musical ideas.
- They can make us much more employable, by allowing us to play gigs with minimal or no rehearsal.
- How the ability to read and utilize charts has helped Daniel develop a strong career as a professional, travel the world and work with all kinds of incredible artists.
- Four common types of charts you are likely to encounter in your work as a musician:
- Sheet music
- Lead sheet
- Formal drum chart
- Homemade chart (aka “cheat sheet”)
- An analysis of several charts, including a lead sheet for “Straight, No Chaser.” Chart elements discussed include:
- Form
- Chord Progression
- Melodic contour and runs
- Rhythmic Melodies
- Cheat sheets:
- How they can be tailored to any drummer’s individual needs.
- Why you don’t need to be able to read music to create them.
- How they’ve been effectively used by all types of professional drummer, including Daniel, Peter Erskine and Josh Freese.
Resources/Links/People Mentioned:
- A great article entitled, A Quick Guide To Using And Writing Drum Charts.
- A sample of piano sheet music.
- Example of a block chart for drummers.
- The lead sheet for “Straight, No Chaser,” which Daniel analyzes in the podcast.
- Sample of a homemade “cheat sheet.”