Best Method for Learning/Improving Reading Standard Notation

[Chris K]

It sounds silly, but the easiest way to improve your sight-reading skills is to just do it. My old teacher would pull out a page in the Real Book, let me look at it for a minute and then I had to play the melody (it was in treble clef) up to speed right then and there. .

For what it's worth, but this is the only post so far I associate with sight reading. The rest are about how to play from standard music notation. Once you played the same stuff a few times, memory starts to play an important role (at least in my lucky case).

Sight reading, IMHO, is 'at first sight'.
An important trick is to learn to read ahead of what you play.

 

[Quadruple Jay]

Unfortunately, I don't have even 2 hours per day for practice. I just started a new job and am working 13 hour shifts. That has thrown a monkey wrench into all my plans. Also, I'm working out of town half the week and am only home the other half. I'm not complaining, I'm glad to have the job, but a lot of my personal plans and goals are being reexamined.

I'm not a full time musician like some guys here on the forum, but my work in a Rock 'n Roll cover band has kept me gigging almost every weekend for over 3 years now. The sight reading exercise is for my personal satisfaction more than anything else. I've never had any need to sight read for what we currently play.

I picked up a software program to drill on the bass clef and mastered that program in less than half an hour. So I don't have any problem recognizing the notes on the staff. Now I'm trying to associate those notes on the staff to the fretboard so I can play bass sheet music without thinking (like when I played sax back in band).

I picked up a Bass and Drum Styles instruction book that has bass sheet music in standard notation. I hope to play along with the backing tracks as I read the music. Each style has about a 6 minute backing track that goes with the exercise. Also, I recently signed on to a bass guitar instruction program on the internet where you learn songs. The instructor sends out .pdf files of the bass music in SN, and in SN+tab. So if I'm learning a new song, I'll be working on the SN alone first.

Because of my new job, and limited free time, I have to prioritize my practice time and prepare for our weekend gigs. At least the Styles instruction book and the program I signed up for on the internet both provide me with some sight reading exercises that I can apply directly to my bass playing in the cover band.

Honestly, before I got this job, I would practice 2 hours per day. Now, however, my goal is try to get in 30 minutes per day. So far, that has been too much of a challenge, especially when I'm out of town working the 13 hour shifts.

Anyway, thanks for the suggestion. I'll keep it in mind for the future.

Honestly as long as you keep consistent and try to do it every day, just 10 minutes of reading a day will do wonders. After a month you'll be drastically better at it. Then all you have to do is keep going!

 

[bobknowsbass]

My favorite book for teaching players unfamiliar with standard notation how to start reading is Ed Friedlands Hal Leonard series. It's practical and well laid out, as all of Ed Friedlands stuff is. I have a student who uses smartmusic and it's really cool, you can slow down the tempo to whatever speed you like and you play along to the accompaniment. If you have a built in mic the program can hear your mistakes and notate what you played in red vs. what you were supposed to play in black. Really cool.
+1 to transcribing simple bass lines, it puts the knowledge into practical application.

 

[JayM]

I found Jim Stinnett's "Reading in Bass Clef" to be very helpful in improving my sight reading (or reading in general). The exercises are designed to get progressively harder.

I agree with a previous poster in that even a few minutes at a time can be useful. A metronome is also helpful - it will keep you from slowing down in the harder parts and speeding up in the easier parts.

 

[GoesThump]

Try see if you can locate any trombone or cello method books. They start off easy and get progressively harder.

I second this suggestion. Hey, you could work your tenor clef reading in the upper registers too!

A bit each day - don't play the same piece too often or (as someone else mentioned) memory starts to kick in.

when I was learning classical db, my teacher used to start each of my lessons off w/about 10 minutes of sight reading. It worked very well.

Good luck!

GT

 

[gtaus]

...You don't need your bass to practice reading rhythms. Just set your metronome to an appropriate tempo and play the rhythms by clapping your hands....

Exactly. I started working on a new song this week that has some real rhythm challenges for me. I put down my bass, set the metronome to extreme slow, and actually clapped out the rhythm. When I got it right, I increased the tempo. Almost got it to performance speed - but not yet there. Still needs more work. The notes/patterns on the bass are easy to play for that song, it's just the rhythm aspect that is kicking my butt. So, yeah, I put down the bass and just clapped out the rhythm like I had been taught many many years ago playing sax in school band.

...Reading rhythms and reading pitches are different skill sets that should be addressed separately with the goal to learn to integrate them....

That makes sense. I'll keep that in mind as I work on those skills.

...Whatever you do, be sure to make it fun. It is fun.

Hey, in my life, it's only Rock 'n Roll and playing cover songs on the weekends. It's all about having fun, projecting fun to the crowd, and personally trying to do the best I can for myself and the guys in the band. Heck, I'm even singing lead on 3 songs for the band now (I also sing backup/harmony on most of our songs). That makes me the one and only singing bass player around here! Not the best bass player, just the only singing bass player....

 

[gtaus]

Honestly as long as you keep consistent and try to do it every day, just 10 minutes of reading a day will do wonders. After a month you'll be drastically better at it. Then all you have to do is keep going!

Thanks for the encouragement. I know that 10 minutes of reading a day is about all I will be able to squeeze in. I'll be looking on getting my reading material together, and checking out those suggestions on method books that others have suggested.

 

[gtaus]

...my teacher used to start each of my lessons off w/about 10 minutes of sight reading. It worked very well....

Good suggestion. I think I'll start my practice sessions with the first 10 minutes for sight reading. Then on to the "more" pressing issues of learning the new songs for our gigs. It would be easy to spend a whole practice session on the new songs and just forget about the sight reading. So, point well taken, start off with the dedicated sight reading and/or other aspects of my practice that don't necessarily relate specifically to the new songs I need to learn.