to tab or not to tab thats the question!!

ridgeback · #1 07-06-2010, 06:50 AM

never used tabs in my life,i think it makes people lazy and does nothing to help your music ear...
younger players i think depend wayyyyy to much on tabs,look at the youtube clips for bass lessons..even when the guy does it slow and simple sombody always asks for the tabs...
i am sure most or the older generation learned by ear because there was no internet lessons no tabs and so on...
not a bashing by the way i would just like to hear your take on it..do you use tabs or go old school??
for me i thing there is way to much crap on playing things exactly right..i do it as best i can but its all my own work and all my own effort..am i wrong ..yeah sometimes i am but its all my own work!!

incident · #2 07-06-2010, 09:29 AM

I think there are valid reasons for someone to use tabs, but many more reasons to go old school.

As far as valid reasons, I think for anyone who is starting out with bass later in life, tabs can be the difference between success (however that may be defined by each individual) and a crash and burn experience.

What I mean is that someone who picks up bass at say 40 yrs. old, they are much more likely to stick with it if they can get several songs under their fingers, a general sense of competency, and more important than anything else....have fun. If reading tabs is the key that unlocks those things I mentioned, then in my book, tab away!!!

Learning theory, reading music, etc. is not easy, and if you can never get a feeling of satisfaction because you are hung up on how to read music, chances are that bass and amp will end up being sold or collecting dust.

alexwittscheck · #3 07-06-2010, 09:43 AM

FYI, guitar music was written in tab in the middle ages. The classical period is when composers started writing guitar parts as sheet music, as far as I know. That being said, since electric bass is a take on the DB, DB music was always sheet music. I know this has done nothing to help the discussion, but oh well.

ridgeback · #4 07-06-2010, 01:43 PM

yeah its been around forever but not that easy to come by...internet has changed music in lots of different ways.things are a lot easier to get hold of..
i am not putting it down if you want to use tabs fine..i just wanted to hear a few other reasons why people choose to do it the easy way...not that there is anything wrong with that..

brotherdoc · #5 07-06-2010, 01:57 PM

Having a few weeks to learn 40 songs while working a full time job and having a family... that's why I use tab.

becker4567 · #6 07-06-2010, 01:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by incident

I think there are valid reasons for someone to use tabs, but many more reasons to go old school.

As far as valid reasons, I think for anyone who is starting out with bass later in life, tabs can be the difference between success (however that may be defined by each individual) and a crash and burn experience.

What I mean is that someone who picks up bass at say 40 yrs. old, they are much more likely to stick with it if they can get several songs under their fingers, a general sense of competency, and more important than anything else....have fun. If reading tabs is the key that unlocks those things I mentioned, then in my book, tab away!!!

Learning theory, reading music, etc. is not easy, and if you can never get a feeling of satisfaction because you are hung up on how to read music, chances are that bass and amp will end up being sold or collecting dust.

Well said! There are those who feel the need to learn to read music and musical theory, and that is great! But there are also those who either start a bit later in life, or only want to play bass for fun and have no desire become semi-pro, and for them, tabs work just fine. Besides, at least from my experience, every time you pick up the bass and play (whether you use tabs or not), you learn something new. Tab away and have fun!

dwm74 · #7 07-09-2010, 09:26 AM

Completely agree with the above post (and the included quote). When I read the original question that was my first thought also. I'm in my late 40's, and the task of learning to sight-read is too daunting for a 'hobby' like making music. If I can learn the basslines to a few dozen songs (from tab) and figure out a few dozen others by ear, then I'm fine with that. If I were in my teens, and really thought I might have a career in music, then I might put forth the effort learning to read, but not at this stage of my life.

Deathblade Eric · #8 07-09-2010, 11:35 AM

I still use my ears for the most part, & lunge for a tab only when I get stuck & really can't figure out what's going on - or if the arrangement/progression is being a bit elusive. Not sure I'd ever attempt to play a tune purely from the TAB, though... way too much can go wrong & it's just no substitute for knowing the song.

Where I find it works best for me is in transcribing a bass line. I don't read music, so "reverse engineering" using a TAB/Notation program (my current favourite is TuxGuitar) is teaching me quite a lot of the basic maths of notation. To make the tab sound correct I'm having to learn about dots, stops, triplets & so forth... and that's probably a good thing, but I don't think it's compulsory.

Pete.

slaps76 · #9 07-10-2010, 09:49 AM

I'm 33 and never picked up an instrument until 5 years ago. I've learned many songs correctly by ear, however I still don't have a great ear, and can't always figure out the right chords/notes. Seems like I either "get it" right away, or don't at all with a song. So yea, I'll look at tabs for reference on songs I either can't figure out at first, or if I need to learn a bunch of songs in a short amount of time.

It might be easy for someone who has a good ear to say don't use tabs, but for people just starting out, who just want to jam on a few songs, they're perfect. I bought my bass 5 years ago just to screw around in my bedroom playing songs I liked, and now I've already been in a few bands, and love gigging....if I was forced to start out reading sheet music or trying to figure everything out on my own, I most likely would have been frustrated and quit. But I agree people should rely less on them to progress, which is what I've been battling with.

ridgeback · #10 07-10-2010, 10:00 AM

thanks for the insight lads

like i said at the start i dont have a problem with it i was just interested to find out why people used it..for myself i dont use it for a few reasons but if you do thats fine..how do you find it works for ya?? i have no desire to go back on the road myself been there done that,i play for fun these days..
i do stand by what i said at the start it does nothing for playing but hey if you like it

Edgar664 · #11 07-10-2010, 11:31 AM

Yeah I think people relies too much in tabs, I'm 21 and I'm the only one of my friends that actually can read notes, personally I think if you are playing music you should be able to read notes... I understand that reading a tab it's much easier and it helps sometimes but I also think that it makes people lazy

bassbully · #12 07-12-2010, 12:46 PM

FWIW I dont care if people learn with tab, learn to read or use ear. Its all about playing music and enjoying it..thats where its at. I suggest players to learn the fretboard and use chord charts..works for me. I have not used tab in years and won't....but that's me.

electracoyote · #13 07-12-2010, 12:50 PM

I use both. I'm a decent reader, but TAB serves a purpose.

And when I'm trying to learn a bunch of songs as fast as I can, I will TAB the difficult passages for reminders until I have them memorized. It's much easier for me than standard notation.

codeinedreams · #14 07-14-2010, 05:43 PM

I use tab because bass is not my first instrument (I grew up playing piano and woodwinds) and I learned bass by ear, so it's an extra tedious step for me to translate sheet music to the fretboard when I've already trained myself to look at notes and automatically know where they go on other instruments. for me tab is easier to read since it's specific to bass, and I can easily jot down ideas in a pinch and refer to them later.