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#201842 04/29/13 08:00 PM
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I just finished a file for Wonderful World which contains a C#m7b5. That chord shows up on the biab main screen as described. But when going into the leadsheet screen, it appears as C# "half diminished" 7 with the "half diminished" appearing as a circle with a line through it.

But I'd rather print the chart with the chord spelled C#m7b5.

How could I do that??

No big deal....I can always use the "ctrl/White Out" command. Just curious.

THANKS!

Jim

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What font are you using? Check in Opt., Preferences, Display.

ps just checking, you do know that a m7b5 is also called a half-diminished chord, and can be notated with the slashed little circle? In other words, what you are seeing is not an error. I do understand you want to see a particular appearance, though.


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Thanks Matt. It is always correct to assume that my theory is at least...well...diminished! (-:

But yes I knew that the two spellings were the same chord. It's just that sometimes we have band members who are new to us and reading our charts for the first time with no rehearsal. We're never sure how well they read and my wife...who knows theory quite well suggested that some players would have to think less with the m7b5 spelling.

But you solved the problem for me. I had jazz fonts selected but changed to "regular" and the chord was spelled they way I wanted.

Just curious about all opinions...especially for musicians playing a live gig and sight reading for the first time. What would be the MOST quickly recognized (on the fly) spelling of that chord?????

THANKS!

Jim

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I don't use the jazz fonts, but I would guess based on fakebooks and commercial charts that most jazz players would most easily recognize that small slashed circle. The major advantage is that there is no mistaking it for anything else when sight reading.


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+1 The small circle with the slash and 7 is more often seen. The m7b5 is seen on older charts. Later, Ray


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This would be a great chance for those other musicians to get into viewing the rather common Half-Diminished symbol of the slash-circle and think and play the m7b5, a good idea because they are very likely to encounter it in a lot of sheets.


--Mac

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As someone with Classical training it drives me crazy that BIAB forces you to call a Cb chord a B when you're in the Key of Gb. It's NOT a B. It's a Cb. You can't have two basic B chords in the same key. IE, you can't have a Bbm and a B. You have a Bbm and a Cb. That's what music theory says and BIAB is ignoring music theory. It'd sure be nice to be able to rename that chord!

There is no 'B' in the Gb scale. There is only a Cb. Why does BIAB call a Cb a B?

Peace,

Ian

Last edited by Ian Ferrin; 04/30/13 07:54 AM.
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Ian, we've recommended this many times in the past but I don't recall any recent posts in the Wishlist. Suggest you post a request there, and don't forget about Fb.


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Thanks guys! The voting for the slashed circle really surprised me since my well worn Real Book uses the -7b5 convention. But it's the 5th Edition dated 1994 so as one poster commented, maybe conventions have changed in more recent years.

But I also use the modern and FREE MusEdit software that has an extensive guitar chord dictionary and it uses the -7b5 convention as well with no choice for the slashed circle version either. Maybe it's just a font issue.

Thanks again for everyone's comments!

(-:

Jim

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Yep another one in agreement here for slashed circle - much the same as the triangle for maj7

The use of the shorthand symbols goes back quite a way and is in no way a "recent" convention afaik

Although either form is fine for me

Dennis

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Yeah, having read both styles from the early sixties, either way...

I only recommend you be consistent. My band knows all my notation tendencies for charts, no surprises.



BIAB 2026 Win Audiophile. Software: Fender Studio One 8, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Fender Quantom HD8 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
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