Windows 10 (64bit) M-Audio Fast Track Pro, Band in a Box 2024, Cubase 13, Cakewalk and far too many VST plugins that I probably don't need or will ever use
Myth #1 - false - Reading music will make you a better guitarist, for instance reading scales, chords, etc
Myth #2 - false - I think you do need to read music. Everyone that I know whom can read music is still playing and most all of the ones that can't read music no longer play. How can you apply theory if you can't read music?
Myth #3 - Maybe true but I don't know for sure.
Myth #4 - First off he played the wrong C note if he is reading from piano notation. For guitar notation he is correct. Plus all of those C notes he is playing are the same notation, i.e. the same note on different strings. That is true for all sting instruments.
Myth #5 - False. Sure you can name the notes you are playing but reading music will tell you how they interact with themselves and other notes. Most tabs that I have seen do not show you the note durations. Instead of taking all that time to learn tab put it to better use and take that time to learn to read music.
Now if you just want to strum a few chords on a guitar and sing sure he may be right. But if you want to learn the guitar correctly you must read music.
The above is my totally biased opinion. Yours may vary.
PS - I had to chuckle when he said learn rhythm notation. It you can't read music how do you know what a quarter, or eight, or 16th, etc duration is?
I think videos like this send the wrong vision on how to play a guitar.
I want my last spoken words to be "I hid a million dollars under the........................"
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
I get regular emails from this guy Mario, as I subscribed, my take from the video is that if you spend so much time trying to be a expert at sight reading at the exclusion of everything else then other aspects of guitar playing will suffer, especially for players with limited time.
Saying that my elementary attempts at reading notation have definitely helped me.
Windows 10 (64bit) M-Audio Fast Track Pro, Band in a Box 2024, Cubase 13, Cakewalk and far too many VST plugins that I probably don't need or will ever use
You might be right jdew,but they are exceptional players who spent hours listening to records and copying the sound. My music teacher was from the Squadronaires who not only read music he wrote it as well...he was a jazz fanatic and I still have his chord sheets...all hand written. It has helped me get back into music, and there is no doubt in my mind that theory is a must when trying to decipher some of the tabs and scores of today.
IMO if you learn to read music, and you also learn music theory, in the end you will be a better musician than you would have if you didn't learn these skills.
This is an uninformed video by someone who wants to present a contentious topic.
If you can not read or write, you have limited ability to communicate. That is true for the common language we speak and for the symbolic language of music.
The idea that one should consider not learning something just because it is time-consuming is frequently promoted by the uneducated.
If you can not be bothered to get a basic rudimentary musical education, then some of us will not be bothered to interact with you.
This sort of stupid thinking is becoming all too prevalent, especially in the United States, where large portions of the population can not read the front page of a newspaper, and people with an MBA can not find Canada on an unmarked map.
Being uneducated in today's world with more or less unlimited information at your fingertips from the internet is a personal choice.
We can continue this stupid conversation about the fact that there is a hand full of well know, famous, highly skilled musicians who are uneducated and use that as an excuse to be uneducated.
That idea that nothing can be learned to improve the ability to play guitar, or any other instrument for that matter, by being able to read music is a patently stupid, uninformed comment.
Billy
New location, new environment, new music coming soon
Seize the moo-ment If you feel like you’ve herd all these cow puns before, you probably have deja-moo
This is an uninformed video by someone who wants to present a contentious topic.
And rustle up some cash through subscriptions and ad revenue.
Quote:
If you can not read or write, you have limited ability to communicate. That is true for the common language we speak and for the symbolic language of music.
The idea that one should consider not learning something just because it is time-consuming is frequently promoted by the uneducated.
If you can not be bothered to get a basic rudimentary musical education, then some of us will not be bothered to interact with you.
This sort of stupid thinking is becoming all too prevalent, especially in the United States, where large portions of the population can not read the front page of a newspaper, and people with an MBA can not find Canada on an unmarked map.
Being uneducated in today's world with more or less unlimited information at your fingertips from the internet is a personal choice.
We can continue this stupid conversation about the fact that there is a hand full of well known, famous, highly skilled musicians who are uneducated and use that as an excuse to be uneducated.
That idea that nothing can be learned to improve the ability to play guitar, or any other instrument for that matter, by being able to read music is a patently stupid, uninformed comment.
Wow! Billy and I agree on something!!!
This is the core concept of "levels of listening". The more you know about music, the more you know to listen for. Any random 5 people here could go to a concert together and hear 5 different concerts.
I remember taking a girl to see Dave Brubeck. She sat there watching his name and his legacy. I sat there thinking things like "That flatted 5 there was a great passing chord" and "Bobby Militello does a nice job filling Paul Desmond's shoes". We saw 2 completely different shows.
That example is kind of what this discussion has become.
For perspective, let me add this. I was married for 5 (long) years to a woman who was the food writer at a newspaper. She was just one small step below gourmet level in the kitchen. I learned a great deal about cooking and became a very good cook. We also started writing an online newsletter together. We ended up with over 100k subscribers and won an internet award for online food writing.
I took a great deal of pride and self satisfaction from both of those things. Yet I have no desire to be a cook or a writer. I just learned those skills at some level of proficiency for my own satisfaction.
Analogy: If you want to learn how to play an instrument FOR YOU, you be happy in learning it any way you want to. If your goal is to play cowboy chords at the 3rd fret and nothing more, you can learn to do that in a week with a quickie CAGED course. But remember this. You are in control of the level at which you set your bar. Not everybody has the same end game. Those of us who learned "this way" only know "this way" and thus in our minds "this way" is the right way.
Last edited by eddie1261; 06/23/2304:01 AM.
I am using the new 1040XTRAEZ form this year. It has just 2 lines.
1. How much did you make in 2023? 2. Send it to us.
Reading music makes explaining all the other stuff (harmony,rhythm) quite a bit easier. Harmony can be described numerically but seeing it on the staff is a picture worth at least 5-10 more words.
Knowing how to read notes makes learning a new song (especially getting all the notes "proper") easier for all but the few greats who could do without. From there do whatever you want with it. But at least start out with an accurate understanding.
Is standard notation for stringed fretted instruments superior to TAB?
Standard notation is a far inferior method to convey what should be played when it comes to stringed fretted instruments. Especially since almost all TAB programs include standard notation.
The snobbery from the folks who subtly imply that musicians who don't sight read are somehow less of a musician than readers is repugnant. It's sad to see it still persists on here. I wish I could say I was surprised.
Is standard notation for stringed fretted instruments superior to TAB?
Standard notation is a far inferior method to convey what should be played when it comes to stringed fretted instruments. Especially since almost all TAB programs include standard notation.
The snobbery from the folks who subtly imply that musicians who don't sight read are somehow less of a musician than readers is repugnant. It's sad to see it still persists on here. I wish I could say I was surprised.
I read standard as well as tab. I find for guitar that tab can be helpful if you are trying to learn maybe what the original artist did. But I can play from standard notation just as well. I also can learn songs from listening. I don't believe anyone thinks you are any better or worse if you don't read, but it certainly helps when communicating with other musicians. Especially those that pretty much only read music to play. I know many classically trained musicians that can't play without music. Just as I know many people that can't read a lick of it but can play quite well. Reading just opens up more of the world of music for me. Most of those great players like to say they didn't read, but I think if the truth were known they either did read some, or wished they did. Sinatra didn't read music but he was professionally trained as a singer and over time he could read a chart and understand the intervals and notes he was seeing.
For some it is not necessary and they don't want to spend the time doing it and that is perfectly fine. The beauty of music is that everyone is different and that is ok.
My wife asked if I had seen the dog bowl. I told her I didn't even know he could.
1. Reading music will make you a better guitar player/musician 2. Reading music is something you will do often as a guitar player 3. Pro musicians know how to read music 4. Reading music is the same no matter what instrument you play 5. Learning to read music deepens your understanding of music theory and fretboard knowledge
1. not necessarily. define "better". See #5 for more info. 2. nope. not unless you are a studio musician and then it's likely to be charts rather than sheet music 3. Not necessarily. Some do, some don't. 4. Nope. 5. Yes. I would tend to agree with this since reading generally equates to a deeper understanding of music and hence music theory and how it relates to the keys or strings or whatever, of the instrument you are playing.
Last edited by Guitarhacker; 07/07/2309:17 AM.
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.com Add nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.
The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
Is standard notation for stringed fretted instruments superior to TAB?
Standard notation is a far inferior method to convey what should be played when it comes to stringed fretted instruments. Especially since almost all TAB programs include standard notation.
Not sure I agree with you on that. Tab gives you the benefit of where on the guitar you're supposed to play the note. On a guitar (for example) that can be helpful as you have 3 or 4 places to find middle C.
However a seasoned guitarist will quickly figure out where a particular song lies best on the fretboard without the tab. For me that experimentation is useful. I usually create multi-verse and chorus arrangements of a tune. I generally play the melody in more than one shape on the fretboard. Its less monotonous.
Where tab is clearly inferior is rhythm. Tabs mostly do not deliver complicated rhythm to the player.
I do think that the best is having both. That's the cats meow. The tab definitely gives you a jump start especially if you're trying to do some note for note stuff. Not my bag, but a few signature licks on a guitar tune, is definitely a crowd pleaser. Tabs can get you there quickly.
If I have to pick one or the other, give me the notation. It may be "far inferior" but its still better.
Tab gives you the benefit of where on the guitar you're supposed to play the note. On a guitar (for example) that can be helpful as you have 3 or 4 places to find middle C.
I do think that the best is having both. That's the cats meow. The tab definitely gives you a jump start especially if you're trying to do some note for note stuff.
+1 As a bass player I'm starting to learn to read tab and in a short amout of time I'm able to read and play simple phrases. This progress would have taken me much longer if I chose to learn standard notation. For me, there is little value in learning any notation if I'm unable to play to it in real-time.
I agree that the cat's meow is both but I have to start somewhere.
Additionally, today's tab is not your grandaddy's tab. Today's tab language appears to me rich and expressive and I've only scratched the surface of it. I'll leave it for the experts to say whether it is as expressive as standard notation but even if it isn't it has all the granular expressiveness that I need right now. My time is limited and tab is definately value added.
https://soundcloud.com/user-646279677 BiaB 2024 Windows For me there’s no better place in the band than to have one leg in the harmony world and the other in the percussive. Thank you Paul Tutmarc and Leo Fender.
Reading music and learning theory are tools that will allow you to become a better musician in less time.
Historically, there have been great speakers who could not read or write their native language and had no instruction for proper grammar. There are fewer of those exceptions now, simply because everyone is taught reading and grammar in school.
But for the vast majority of speakers, learning to read/write is essential to become excellent at it.
The same goes for reading music and learning theory.
Reading and theory are the ABC's and grammar of music.
There are always the exceptions that can play great music without learning to read or learn music theory.
But for the average to even above average musically talented musician, learning these skills give you a head start and will let you progress on your musical journey much faster than you would without these skills.
So in the long run if you learn these fundamentals, you will not only get better quicker, but you will get better than you would have without them, simply because you understand what you are playing more fully.
Even those exceptions we hear over and over again would have been even better if they learned these skills.
My neighbor was teaching herself the saxophone by ear. She learned how to finger the notes and how to blow into the horn.
I took her under my wing, not for money, but because we were friends. I taught her how to read, basic music theory, and had her memorize the more common scales.
It stalled her for some time, she didn't learn new songs, but then, she took off like a rocket.
She moved to New Orleans and later played in the NOLA Jazz and Heritage Festival in the Rockie Charles band. If she didn't learn to read and basic theory (reading is part of that) she never would have progressed to that point in so few years.
You can repeat the names of the famous exceptions all you want, but if you learn the basics, you will probably become a better musician quicker than you would without this knowledge.
Is standard notation for stringed fretted instruments superior to TAB?
Absolutely. Throw away the TAB and make your own choices on fingering and picking. Even better, learn to read the grand staff. I used to do wedding receptions borrowing my wife's piano songbooks and sight-reading it from the beginning.
Quote:
Standard notation is a far inferior method to convey what should be played when it comes to stringed fretted instruments. Especially since almost all TAB programs include standard notation.
Rubbish. See my earlier remark.
Quote:
The snobbery from the folks who subtly imply that musicians who don't sight read are somehow less of a musician than readers is repugnant. It's sad to see it still persists on here. I wish I could say I was surprised.
The snobbery is yours. I don't know anyone who believes that readers are better musicians. Too many fabulous musicians who don't read.
Readers often get better gigs because leaders and producers know that we can deliver without wasting time and money—or that we can do it at all.
BTW, I have no problem responding to confrontational nonsense with reality.
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Is standard notation for stringed fretted instruments superior to TAB?
Standard notation is a far inferior method to convey what should be played when it comes to stringed fretted instruments. Especially since almost all TAB programs include standard notation.
Bovine Excrement.
Originally Posted By: bobcflatpicker
The snobbery from the folks who subtly imply that musicians who don't sight read are somehow less of a musician than readers is repugnant. It's sad to see it still persists on here. I wish I could say I was surprised.
The only snobbery I've seen is from the wilfully ignorant who wear that ignorance like a badge of honor.
Byron Dickens
BIAB. CbB. Mixbus 32C 8 HP Envy. Intel core i7. 16GB RAM W10. Focusrite Scarlett 18i 20. Various instruments played with varying degrees of proficiency.
Looking back on all the musicians I've known, I've come to the conclusion that reading or not reading music really has its roots in when and how that person first learned to play an instrument and which instrument they started on or played mostly.
- Piano, all horns (trumpet,sax,clarinet,etc), violin are taught with reading music as an integral and continuing part of the instruction from the start. And there was always instruction; no self-taught... didn't exist. When I started trumpet, included from the start and continuing in every lesson was reading music.. tells me what notes to play. The middle school and high school band class ... same thing. That was continued in college. Read and play... only now including hear and transcribe and the theory stuff no one told you about before. Want to play something? Get the music, read it and play it. That's what was taught right from the start.
- Guitar Guitar was not part of formal school band. A guitar teacher was typically some person who played guitar in a band and they would show you enough to get started. There wasn't much in the way of formal instruction. What there was of it, if you could find it, was classical. So you are starting and learning in an essentially self-teaching universe.
Few people start playing guitar wanting to play classical music (I met one person but I imagine there might be some others out there someplace). Its guitar they hear and see being played in the music they want to play .... the current rock, R&B or country hits they hear on the radio. And that's the goal... play that stuff. No marching band or stage band or school orchestra stuff. Gimme rock n' roll and play that funky music!!! Real loud.
Guitar in its basic form is a chording instrument. Very few people start out playing single note lines or even wanting to.
Need to know what chord when and how to strum the rhythm. Beginning guitar players want to learn songs, right now right away. Playing "lead guitar" can come later or maybe never, so don't need notes and scales and dots on paper, just need the chords that match the song and when to play them.
The great desire to strum chords and sing songs means no patience for playing scales or any other music theory stuff... don't need it to strum chords and sing songs. Need to know how to make chords... learn the hand positions... just need a Mel Bay chord book.
How to know which chords to play? Listen to the record a lot and figure it out. Not too difficult because most all the songs were pop songs... three chords. Learn to play "Louie Louie" and you can play about 1,000 pop/rock hit songs right now right away. At least enough to strum it out and holler the lyrics in a passable approximation.
And too, even if you were looking for written music to the latest rock hit, you weren't going to find it anywhere. At least not this year.
So guitar players weren't taught to read. They were taught to play chords, listen to records and figure it out.
So it doesn't surprise me to read some statistic that about 10-15% of guitar players can read music. It was never part of the course of instruction (which was pretty sparse to being with).
Of course, that was a long time ago in another century and maybe things have changed. I wouldn't know.
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