learning standard notation at work

[Mahumadi]

Im in the process of learning to read standard notation and have yet to really get into it. Im wondering what ideas any of you may have for learning this while in a work setting? Obviously I cant have my bass with me, so it would be more or less reading/studying etc. instead of hands on learning/sight reading. Let me know what you guys think I could do for max results or what worked for you! Thanks

[powerbass]

I'm not sure what you mean by work BUT - Reading music notation is just like reading letters and sentences. The note symbol is a symbol for a letter (A, B, Dd etc. - remember there are only 12 notes in western music) and a sound. You can practice reading music w/out your bass by just "reading" the music like reading words, this will allow you to identify the notes quicker. Then when you have your bass sing the notes as you play, this will "attach" a sound/pitch to the note. You can apply this approach to scales or melodic lines. Eventually you will be able to "read, speak and write" the language of music just like your native language. I guess what I am saying is approach learning music as you would learning a new language

[Lexicon]

I printed this out and stuck it to the wall of my cubicle.

http://www.studybass.com/lessons/rea...-fretboard.pdf

[Yvon]

I did it, about 20 years ago. It is possible. But of course, you will have to do it with your bass also. But it will go much faster.

I had a book, it's just rythm. I just tapped the rythm on the table with a metronome.
So you will learn how to read rythm.

I had another book, wich are just ramdom notes, but with no rythms. I would say the name of the notes out loud (or in your head) I remember I started very slowly and pretty fast it will go fast.


When you come back home, you combine everything and start reading things on your bass, I started with the fakebook in bass clef.

[DudeistMonk]

http://teoria.com

That site has lots of interactive flash things that will teach you to read/train your ears/teach you chords...

I guess I would print/draw a fret board diagram (just dots, no note names) and then bring up this page http://teoria.com/exercises/read.htm and select "note name" for your answers and whenever you answer one point at the note on the fretboard diagram.

I've been doing the interval recognition thing on this site at work...it's helping a bit, I do well ascending in a single key now, but when I do all 12 notes ascending and descending I suck.

[MalcolmAmos]

Flash cards cost $4 a pack and fit into a desk drawer, briefcase, glove box, TV table or night stand. Scatter several around so you can get some study time in whenever you find yourself with a few moments between tasks.

Hint. The deck will probably have the piano keyboard on the reverse side showing where on the keyboard that specific note will be found. See if the store has them with the bass fretboard on the reverse side of the card. If not just understand where lower ledger notes will be found, where middle register notes will be found and where above the staff ledger notes will be found - each note has a specific spot on your fretboard. When you can flip a card and call out the note name -- in the same time it takes you to say your name -- and know where on the fretboard that specific note is located -- then you are ready to start practice playing your guitar from standard notation sheet music. Being able to identify and verbalize the note name is step one. Being able to know where on the fretboard that note is located - so you can play that note is step two.

I like flash cards because I can take them with me. As much unemployment as there is right now I would make sure I was studying standard notation on my own time. You may find you have a lot of free time for studying standard notation.......

Good luck.

[dmrogers]

In addition to the site listed above, and Studybass, I use this site too:

Music Theory

Hope this helps.

[mambo4]

Rhythm is by far the harder part to learn to read well. Find some rhythm studies and tap them on your desk. Latin bass lines make good intermediate material.

[fourfinger]

I would say emphatically, under no circumstances should you be "studying" music at work very obviously or very much:

A) your work quality and/or credibility might become suspect
B) your work might distract you from learning music

However, you could easily and safely (and ethically) do something along the lines of a "mnemonic thought for the day" calendar: today's thought might be "G can be written on the lowest line and the highest space," while also thinking about words that begin with G and mentally placing those objects into those locations, for example Gorillas doing chinups on that bottom line or the color Green filling that highest space.

Whenever you have a couple of seconds to ponder, let your mind return to that one single thought for the day. Soon, that thought should be well on its way to becoming second-nature, and meanwhile you haven't wasted any work time at all.

[Stumbo]

Hey, he could be studying on his breaks or lunch time. "Under no circumstances" is kind of over the top. I'm sure he can judge what's best for himself. :0

You might want to check out some of the following links for information/instruction on reading music:

~Theory
Easy understanding of chords
Music Theory for Practical People book
Online Visual Beginning Theory, ear trainer

Beginner's Bass Clef tips
"Name that note" online SN game
Downloadable learn to read "bass clef" software
Online bass clef audio/visual trainer
print bass clef flashcards/staff paper

Learning basic theory
Intro scale & chord theory
3rds & 7ths?
Theory links list
Theory (from the DB side of TB)

Learning "modes"
Reason for modes
Using modes
Key signatures/Circle of 5ths/Cycle of 4ths
Circle/Cycle of 5ths/4ths (spreadsheet format)

~Rhythm
1 Learn rhythm
2

~Ear training
Goodear.com
Test your ear
Free downloadable ear trainer (basic/advanced) Solfege. Great program
Free downloadable sing and learn treble/bass clef program
Trainers/tutorials. Music theory, ear training, read music, chords, intervals, etc.
Discussion of Solfege
Bassist's guide to singing
Taking transcribing to the next level

~Sight Reading
1 Learning
2
Improving
Practicing
Transcriptions to practice;many with .mp3 files

[rcarraher]

Originally Posted by Mahumadi

Im in the process of learning to read standard notation and have yet to really get into it. Im wondering what ideas any of you may have for learning this while in a work setting? Obviously I cant have my bass with me, so it would be more or less reading/studying etc. instead of hands on learning/sight reading. Let me know what you guys think I could do for max results or what worked for you! Thanks

There's a program out there, I believe the "trial version" will let you enter 20 bars. TabLedit ( I know, Tab.) but it'll let you enter standard notation as well, and play it back thru the midi player on your PC (Media Player). I find it useful.

[CrackerJackLee]

Good post, Mahumadi:

Here's some simplistic mentalizing things that I'm working on...when there's down time at work (or on the train) where you can mentally do a little music.

Try to memorize the intervals on the staff:
thirds - adjacent lines or spaces
fifths - skip a line or space (G to D, skip B) (C to G, skip E)
sevenths - skip two lines or two spaces
fourths - skip a space and a line
etc...

Memorize the twelve major triads (GBD, CEG, ...) as they are built in thirds and fall on adjacent spaces or lines. You need this anyway. There's only 12 to remember. Take each triad randomly and write it on the staff (physically or mentally).

Take a page from a book and read it letter by letter. Ignore any letters above G. As you come to each letter from A to G, write it on staff paper or do so mentally while at work. Or go through the 50 States from Alabama to Wyoming! (or go through your little black book...)

Also, place a pen/pencil between your thumb and index finger and pretend that it is your fingerboard. Tap your four fingers accordingly as you read the staff or do the above letter thing. Try this on four new pencils glued together to emulate the bass fingerboard - or bring a ukelele to work. (LOL!)

Memorize your key signatures.

Pick a fingerboard position and visualize each note in that position.
I would start from the open position, then first, then second, etc... so that you're always building on previously learned notes.

As bass guitarists we only need the Open Position and the G string (with some help from the D string). Therefore four open strings, frets 1 to 4, and the G string up to about the 17th fret. A total of 4 + 16 + 13 = 33 notes (about 3 octaves). These are the real money notes. The rest of the fingerboard is duplication. The upper closed positions can come later. Anyway, limit yourself to bite sized parts of the fingerboard.

Prepare a list of rhythm figures from your sheet music collection and select one for daily visualizing and pencil tapping, such as eighth notes and dotted sixteenths, or the two bar clave rhythm, or a complex one measure funk bass line and silently work it.

This is what I'm working on, but it's still not easy. Reading music is the hardest thing we can aquire, unless we were raised with lessons. I'd be interested in feedback and suggestions, also. Cheers!

[Jim Nazium]

Originally Posted by CrackerJackLee

Good post, Mahumadi:

Here's some simplistic mentalizing things that I'm working on...when there's down time at work (or on the train) where you can mentally do a little music.

Try to memorize the intervals on the staff:
thirds - adjacent lines or spaces
fifths - skip a line or space (G to D, skip B) (C to G, skip E)
sevenths - skip two lines or two spaces
fourths - skip a space and a line
etc...

Memorize the twelve major triads (GBD, CEG, ...) as they are built in thirds and fall on adjacent spaces or lines. You need this anyway. There's only 12 to remember. Take each triad randomly and write it on the staff (physically or mentally).

Take a page from a book and read it letter by letter. Ignore any letters above G. As you come to each letter from A to G, write it on staff paper or do so mentally while at work. Or go through the 50 States from Alabama to Wyoming! (or go through your little black book...)

Also, place a pen/pencil between your thumb and index finger and pretend that it is your fingerboard. Tap your four fingers accordingly as you read the staff or do the above letter thing. Try this on four new pencils glued together to emulate the bass fingerboard - or bring a ukelele to work. (LOL!)

Memorize your key signatures.

Pick a fingerboard position and visualize each note in that position.
I would start from the open position, then first, then second, etc... so that you're always building on previously learned notes.

As bass guitarists we only need the Open Position and the G string (with some help from the D string). Therefore four open strings, frets 1 to 4, and the G string up to about the 17th fret. A total of 4 + 16 + 13 = 33 notes (about 3 octaves). These are the real money notes. The rest of the fingerboard is duplication. The upper closed positions can come later. Anyway, limit yourself to bite sized parts of the fingerboard.

Prepare a list of rhythm figures from your sheet music collection and select one for daily visualizing and pencil tapping, such as eighth notes and dotted sixteenths, or the two bar clave rhythm, or a complex one measure funk bass line and silently work it.

This is what I'm working on, but it's still not easy. Reading music is the hardest thing we can aquire, unless we were raised with lessons. I'd be interested in feedback and suggestions, also. Cheers!

Nice post! I'm going to print this one out and save it.

[Mahumadi]

Originally Posted by CrackerJackLee

Good post, Mahumadi:

Here's some simplistic mentalizing things that I'm working on...when there's down time at work (or on the train) where you can mentally do a little music.

Try to memorize the intervals on the staff:
thirds - adjacent lines or spaces
fifths - skip a line or space (G to D, skip B) (C to G, skip E)
sevenths - skip two lines or two spaces
fourths - skip a space and a line
etc...

Memorize the twelve major triads (GBD, CEG, ...) as they are built in thirds and fall on adjacent spaces or lines. You need this anyway. There's only 12 to remember. Take each triad randomly and write it on the staff (physically or mentally).

Take a page from a book and read it letter by letter. Ignore any letters above G. As you come to each letter from A to G, write it on staff paper or do so mentally while at work. Or go through the 50 States from Alabama to Wyoming! (or go through your little black book...)

Also, place a pen/pencil between your thumb and index finger and pretend that it is your fingerboard. Tap your four fingers accordingly as you read the staff or do the above letter thing. Try this on four new pencils glued together to emulate the bass fingerboard - or bring a ukelele to work. (LOL!)

Memorize your key signatures.

Pick a fingerboard position and visualize each note in that position.
I would start from the open position, then first, then second, etc... so that you're always building on previously learned notes.

As bass guitarists we only need the Open Position and the G string (with some help from the D string). Therefore four open strings, frets 1 to 4, and the G string up to about the 17th fret. A total of 4 + 16 + 13 = 33 notes (about 3 octaves). These are the real money notes. The rest of the fingerboard is duplication. The upper closed positions can come later. Anyway, limit yourself to bite sized parts of the fingerboard.

Prepare a list of rhythm figures from your sheet music collection and select one for daily visualizing and pencil tapping, such as eighth notes and dotted sixteenths, or the two bar clave rhythm, or a complex one measure funk bass line and silently work it.

This is what I'm working on, but it's still not easy. Reading music is the hardest thing we can aquire, unless we were raised with lessons. I'd be interested in feedback and suggestions, also. Cheers!

Great post! Thank you