The Nashvile Number System

The Nashville Number Sysytem The Nashvile Number System

The Nashville Number System is a code or a shorthand used by musicians to help out in the communication of how a song is supposed to go.

Since this system uses numbers instead of notes, it can be applied to play any song in any key without changing the notation! This amazingly easy and efﬁcient system is used in studios and on stage all around the world.

Name your favorite artist: I can pretty much guarantee that they use this system when they cut an album. Whether you play by sheet music, play by ear, or both, this system will completely change the way you look at learning and playing music.

The Origins of the System The Nashville Number System was originally developed by a guy named Neal Matthews Jr. in the late 1950’s. Matthews was a member of a group called The Jordanaires. The Jordanaires were a, if not THE, backup band in Nashville in the 50’s and 60’s, and they are still around today (with a bit of a lineup change). They worked with country artists such as Patsy Cline, George Jones, and Johnny Cash, but they are probably best known for their work with Elvis Presley for 15 years!

Matthews came up with a simpliﬁed way for the Jordanaires to communicate in the studio. Instead of using letter names to call out or write down chords, he used numbers. This meant that the form was universal and could be played in any key. Charlie McCoy expanded the system so that it could be more descriptive of the “color”, or type, of the chords.

Note: What most people don’t realize about the Nashville Number System is that it is similar to a system

© Copyright John Boulware 2010 www.music-theory-for-musicians.com The Nashville Number Sysytem used by classical musicians for centuries called basso continuo. This eventually evolved into figured bass, and then ﬁnally into the modern roman numeral system which is nearly identical to the Nashville Number system. While these systems are beyond the scope of this book and in fact have volumes written about themselves, it is worth noting their similarity to the one we’ll be exploring.

Chapter 1: Getting Started

The basic theory behind the Nashville Number System is that each note in the diatonic (major or minor) scale is assigned a number. These numbers are then used to represent chords based on that note in the scale. Let’s do a quick review on major and minor scales. A major scale is made with the following whole steps and half steps. Let’s use the key of C ﬁrst: C D E F G A B C w w h w w w h Now let’s apply that to the key of A: A B C♯ D E F♯ G♯ A w w h w w w h A minor scale is made the following way. Let’s do A minor ﬁrst: A B C D E F G A w h w w h w w

And now C minor: C D E♭ F G A♭ B♭ C w h w w h w w These are the forms of what major (wwhwwwh) and minor (whwwhww) scales are. If you remember these whole steps and half steps, the rest should be very easy for you. Note: One good way to remember these is to say them out loud: “Whole whole half, whole whole whole half,” for major or “Whole half whole, whole half whole, whole,” for minor.