Multi-Instrumentalist

[TizzleNizz]

I'm sure there's plenty of you guys here that play other instruments other then bass.. well, before i pose my question, let's share a little history first.

I started on the piano at a very young age. The piano is a very useful tool even if you dont want to play it seiously, it's like musical chart layed out in front of you for any reference.. well anyways, i played piano for a solid 7 years before starting to dabble on the guitar. After moving (geographically) and had a change of lifestyle, the piano lesson stopeed and the guitar became my primary instrument. I actually wanted to do bass guitar, but parents assured me i'd get more out of it if i did guitar. Well that's the truth, i felt comfortable with the bass guitar while playin the 6 string. As my taste started going towards classical, i started to really pay attention to more music and took a lil classical guitar lessons.

Now here's my question.... when playin piano, i read both trebble and bass clef.. have no trouble there.. and then guitar, only treble clef.. i've gotten so used to the treble clef (cause i've been expose to THAT clef most) that whenever i open up hte bass book, my first reaction is always to play it in trble notes. another contributing factor is that the bass is tuned in 4th, just like guitars, so i can almost think of it as the first 4 strings on the guitar, which i'm used to reading in treble clef!!

so is there a way you guys handle this real confusing problem?

[tsolo]

Originally Posted by TizzleNizz

I'm sure there's plenty of you guys here that play other instruments other then bass.. well, before i pose my question, let's share a little history first.

I started on the piano at a very young age. The piano is a very useful tool even if you dont want to play it seiously, it's like musical chart layed out in front of you for any reference.. well anyways, i played piano for a solid 7 years before starting to dabble on the guitar. After moving (geographically) and had a change of lifestyle, the piano lesson stopeed and the guitar became my primary instrument. I actually wanted to do bass guitar, but parents assured me i'd get more out of it if i did guitar. Well that's the truth, i felt comfortable with the bass guitar while playin the 6 string. As my taste started going towards classical, i started to really pay attention to more music and took a lil classical guitar lessons.

Now here's my question.... when playin piano, i read both trebble and bass clef.. have no trouble there.. and then guitar, only treble clef.. i've gotten so used to the treble clef (cause i've been expose to THAT clef most) that whenever i open up hte bass book, my first reaction is always to play it in trble notes. another contributing factor is that the bass is tuned in 4th, just like guitars, so i can almost think of it as the first 4 strings on the guitar, which i'm used to reading in treble clef!!

so is there a way you guys handle this real confusing problem?

yep, I don't read music unless I absolutely have to. Mostly for vocals so, I may read either one.

[esvsteamship]

You could try marking the notes in a scale book with their corresponding letter, warm up with the scales, and then try playing the normal music. I did something similar when first learning to read music and it could help. You could also pencil in the notes of the first couple of measures, just to remind yourself of the different clef....other than that, I can't think of anything.

Beth's 2 pennies

[Mike Goodbar]

Here’ a little trick I always use:

When reading bass clef, sight-transpose everything up a minor third, adding the appropriate three sharps, but actually imagine that its in treble clef, while at the same time mentally adding three flats to the newly transposed key. Works like a charm.

BTW: I also play piano, and while I was always a great disappointment to my piano teacher, knowledge of the piano keyboard, as you pointed out, is invaluable. I also play chromatic harmonica, which I always think of as a piano keyboard (the slide button acting as the "black keys.")

[tplyons]

I started in 1995 playing alto sax in the third grade. Have played alto ever since. Dabbled with bari freshman year, and still play it when needed at school. Tenor has been my primary for jazz since then, as alto has succombed to being used only in concert band as we have plenty of great alto players in my school. I play bass guitar for one jazz band, double bass for the orchestra (I started in December) and I'm playing clarinet and tenor sax in the pit orchestra. (I started clarinet two days ago)

I also play acoustic guitar and harmonica half-assed.