Now for the slash chords:

At first, the slash chords may look more complex, but hold on, this is well worth the effort.

Let's pretend we have big brains for a minute.  Let's change a normal G7 chord into a G11 chord. If you were a music theory student, you'd know that in order to construct this chord, you'd have to stack up the notes G,B,D,F,A and C.

So, let's reduce all this math to two simple things: The root of the chord ("G") and the F major chord.

Now, anytime you see a chord written as G7, or A7, or F7 and want to transform it into a great modern sounding 11th chord, simply play the ROOT in your left hand ("G" in this case), and a major chord one whole step lower than the root in your right hand (an F major chord in this case). READ THAT AGAIN 3 TIMES! ONCE YOU WRAP YOUR BRAIN AROUND IT, 11TH CHORDS ARE SIMPLE!

Are you trying to understand this without going through our basic course first? Click here for the Rhythmic Patterns Piano Lessons site and check out the course...that way your brain won't explode!

Did you notice that I said only play the ROOT >in your left hand?

This leaves out the third, and the fifth of the chord ("B and D" in this case). Basically, this gives the chord a much more open, modern sound instead of a congested old fashioned sound.

Here's how this is written as a slash chord: "F/G"

Unfortunately, some people (not you) get confused, because the F is on the left and is played by the right hand. To add to the confusion, the G is on the right and played by the left hand!

To remedy this, you need to look at the slash with a different perspective. If you consider that the F is ABOVE the slash instead of on the left, it becomes much easier to understand that it's played by the right hand. The G is BELOW the slash and is played by the left hand.

OK Dr. Science, read that paragraph again.

Song Example WITHOUT Slash chords:

Song Example WITH Slash chords: