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Learn treble clef?

M

MichelD

May 19, 2014
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#1
I've learned and forgotten how to read treble clef at least three times in the past 50 years.

Lately I've been working at learning bass clef more thoroughly so that I can study walking bass instruction books.

The dilemma I am facing is that I've been playing with a couple guys (mando and guitar) who love to play jazz standards from charts.

Now they seem happy to have me just support them by playing the chord notes and arpeggios through the chords and my walking is getting better, but I'd love to read the melodies on the charts. Trouble is my brain and fingers get confused. I can't seem to be able to switch from one clef to the other.
 
#2
Treble clef (or G clef) is just an extension of bass clef (F cleff). That first ledger line c above the staff is the first ledger line c below the staff in treble clef.

Also, the clef itself is the G clef because it wraps around the line or space that represents the G on paper. Same with F clef and C clef. It's much more common for C clef to move around the staff. The G and F clefs (cleves? Clefes?) stay where they are mostly out of piano tradition.

If you really want to push your reading skills, start moving your clefs around and and start reading your F's on the middle line or your G's on the bottom line or the spaces. Just go nuts with it.

I wouldn't do that because I'm lazy, but I think it's a good idea.
 
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#5
dreamadream99 said:
Indicates to me you have no vested interest in it. Don’t waste your time.
Click to expand...

Well, I found it useful when I tried to learn fiddle for a while, but in playing bass for the last 43 years, most of my learning has been either learning songs from others and studying arpeggios and scales. It's just in recent years, I've developed a real interest in at least getting good at reading bass clef enough to learn more sophisticated walking styles.

And now, as I indicated before; I find that all the lead sheets the guys bring have the melodies in treble clef of course, so I'm trying to get a grip on that.
 
#6
Curious. How does one forget Treble Clef?
Unless you are talking about gaining and loosing sight reading fluency,
It seems like riding a bike to me.
I generally parse the staff as intervals instead of notes,
so for me it's a matter of identifying the key, and a starting note, and I'm good.
It makes me fairly clef independent, But not truly fluent, I suppose.
 
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#7
mambo4 said:
Curious. How does one forget Treble Clef?
Unless you are talking about gaining and loosing sight reading fluency,
It seems like riding a bike to me.
I generally parse the staff as intervals instead of notes,
so for me it's a matter of identifying the key, and a starting note, and I'm good.
It makes me fairly clef independent, But not truly fluent, I suppose.
Click to expand...


There were no music programs in the elementary or high schools I attended until my last year in high school. Finally I was able to take one year of clarinet from the age of 16 to 17 but didn't pursue it after that. I took up bass in 1976 and bought a simple instruction book but ended up putting that away and ended up learning songs from guitar players to play in bands instead. Thus my lack of formal music training.
 
#12
Usually for a bass player the bass clef is just like to speak your mother tongue language, very important but is also true that a lot of gigs and opportunities, no matter what kind of scenario you're involved, comes with treble clef, so it's like to speak a second language, try to use it, develop and improve it anytime.
Yo have to be naturale and super confident with bass clef and a bit less with treble clef ;):thumbsup:
 
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#13
enricogaletta said:
Usually for a bass player the bass clef is just like to speak your mother tongue language, very important but is also true that a lot of gigs and opportunities, no matter what kind of scenario you're involved, comes with treble clef, so it's like to speak a second language, try to use it, develop and improve it anytime.
Yo have to be naturale and super confident with bass clef and a bit less with treble clef ;):thumbsup:
Click to expand...
Bonus points for sight-transposing sheet music for Bb or Eb instruments. But I guess that's a skill most people won't need...
 
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#15
My real book is in treble, like the lead sheets I have always been given for gigs.
I'm usually not expected to play the melody but comp along with chord symbols.
Hearing the treble melody with the notation in front of me is also useful for orienting myself to where I am in the song. At my less than 100% fluent reading level I can learn to recognize the phrases and sections and follow pretty well.
 
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#17
I read treble better than bass clef these days
Increases the variety of music I can access, esp jazz solos.

I added 6 string as well. I actually practice more 4 string playing very high.
 

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