theres always Nashville Numbers:
Nashville number system
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The
Nashville Number System is an informal method of
transcribing music by denoting the
scale degree on which a
chord is built. It was developed by
Neal Matthews, Jr. in the late '50s as a simplified system for
The Jordanaires to use in the studio and further developed by
Charlie McCoy. It resembles the
Roman numeral and
figured bass systems traditionally used to transcribe a
chord progression. By writing chords as numbers, music may be
transposed easily. As a simple system of transcription, it can be used with only a rudimentary background in
music theory.
Improvisation structures can be quickly explained using numbers and chord changes can be communicated mid-song by holding up the corresponding number of fingers. The system is flexible, and can be embellished to include more information (such as chord color or to denote a bass note in an inverted chord).
Nashville notation
Main article:
Nashville number system
Nashville notation or Nashville number system
[2] is a method of writing, or sketching out, musical ideas, using numbers in place of
chord names. For example, in the key of C major, the chord D minor 7 can be written as "dm7", "2m7", or "ii7".
In the key of C, C=1, D=2, E=3, and so on for all seven notes in the key. So, the chord progression C///F///G///C/// would correspond to 1///4///5///1/// in Nashville notation, while G///C///D///G/// in the key of G would also become 1///4///5///1///.
This method of notation allows
musicians who are familiar with basic
music theory to play the same song in any key.