How to notate syncopations in measures that starts with slashes

Question

(Apologies in advance for possibly incorrect terminology. Also, I'm fairly new to slash notation.)

I am writing a chord sheet for my band. I use slash notation and explicitly specify important rhythms/syncopations using rhythmic slashes. However, I am unsure how to notate a syncopated final 8th note in a measure that is otherwise just filled with slashes (no specific rhythm). Or more generally, notating syncopations when the part of the measure up to the syncopation has no specific rhythm and is therefore filled with slashes.

For example, in the image below, I do not want the crossed-out 8th notes, because they should not be emphasized; only the final 8th note in each measure (where the chord changes) should be emphasized by the band.

Are there good ways to notate this?

I tried making the first of the two 8th notes invisible, but that leaves an unseemly gap. I may be able to reduce it, but I'm concerned that it may not be a clear way to notate what I'm after.

I have also considered using a pause for the first of the two 8th notes, though that may give the impression that the band should not play on that beat, which is wrong.

Answer 1

Here's four possibilities. What would YOU play if you saw each of them?

The last one is the least specific, showing the anticipated chord change without implying a set rhythm for therest of the bar.

Answer 2

Here's my preferred way to show that a chord is to be "pushed". I write a tied eight note in front of the chord symbol:

How to do that in MuseScore 3

In MuseScore 3.6.2, you can add an eighth note and tie in front of a chord symbol with the Special Characters window, which you can open by pressing F2 while editing the chord symbol.

To get the chord symbol to align the way you want, you'll have to attach it to the last slash note of the previous bar instead of the first slash note of the next bar.

In MuseScore 2?

In MuseScore 2, I couldn't get the F2 Special Characters window to add the symbols to a chord symbol. But you could add a normal staff text by pressing Ctrl/Cmd-T and add the push symbols as a separate text element.

How to do that in Sibelius 6

In Sibelius 6, you can do the "push" symbol very nicely with Legacy Chord Symbols and with custom entries added to the Word Menus.

To add the push symbol to a chord symbol, right-click on the chord symbol when editing it, and you get the context menu from which you can select the extra symbol that you added in Preferences / Word Menus / Chords (standard).