lead sheet

[leed]

noun

1. a copy of a song containing the melody line, sometimes along with the lyrics and the notations indicating the harmonic structure.

Word History and Origins

Origin of lead sheet¹

An Americanism dating back to 1940–45

Example Sentences

Key to making the system work is placing an insulating material such as a lead sheet between the pixels to increase the contrast between radiation readings coming into the detector from different directions.

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They used lead sheets instead of fully written-out arrangements, and played everything live.

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Stepney impressed them so much, he kept getting called back to work, and eventually became the label’s lead sheet writer.

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Mr. Distler, on the other hand, said he worked primarily from paper — lead sheets and scores — rather than by listening closely to records.

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Instead of classical music, she taught her students to play big band jazz off lead sheets, a form of musical notation with fewer written parts and more room for improvisation.

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Related Words

• composition