Looking fingers while reading music

[Geogio]

Professor Bailey makes a good point of explaining how he does it by positioning the music stand off of your neck hand right or left. So that way, you're glancing at your neck and also seeing the music a foot away from where your neck is and you turn the music stand sideways for a low profile. Low profile stealth mode includes a non-gloss black orcheastra stand.

We used to do that at stage band and I have a music stand in most situations. Some people have a lot of music stand candy on theirs but mine's low profile and I put it off of my left hand so that I'm looking at my fingers and noting my position while glancing at the manuscripts simultaneously.

 

[Wasnex]

From a sight reading perspective, looking at your hand is a huge disadvantage; especially if the music is fast and technical.

IMHO staring at your hand is also generally a no, no when performing head charts (from memory), it's usually better to make eye contact with the other musicians or the audience. Putting on a show involves more than playing the notes.

It's okay to look at your hand on occasion, as long as it doesn't cause collateral damage.

 

[J Wilson]

^If that's the case, then why do most of the tabs that I read go "up and down" the neck, rather than "across" the neck?
It seems like it would be easier (especially on a 5-string) to go across the neck.

And is the logical solution to that to "stop reading tabs and start reading music"?

YES.

 

[J Wilson]

You can't read a chart and look at your hands.

Play long enough, your hands will know where the notes are and how to get there from here. I played piano from scores and sheet music without ever looking at my hands.

Two ways to break yourself of looking at the fingerboard:

1) Practice in front of a big mirror that shows the entire length of the bass. Now you can see your hands (this is a great way to spot and fix iffy technique) and teaches you to look straight ahead. After a while you won't look down at your hands or look in the mirror: You're hands now know where they are.

2) Practice in a pitch black room. Take a play along or a solo exercise and flip the lights OFF as you are about to start. Pitch black. Your hands will find their way.

Most musicians never realize just how much muscle memory they've grown, so all you really need to do, with a little work, is just stop looking.

 

[Carl Hillman]

In theory, you should never have to look at your left hand, but in reality, sometimes it is better to steal a glance than blow a long shift and end up dropping a bunch of stinky notes.

Then there is the conundrum of needing to look at a conductor, or someone cueing different parts of the music.

In the long run, strive to never need to watch yourself.

 

[steve_ss]

There shouldn’t be confusion. If you look at bassist’s performances across the musical spectrum, you see that it is routinely done. After minutes, hours, days, weeks, years of deliberate practice. Maybe you were just kidding. Ok.

Yes I am sort of joking, but sort of not. With my sydlexia, I can't follow along on printed sheet music (tabs or standard notation). If I take my eyes off of the paper even for a moment, I lose my place when I come back. As for memorizing the music... boy I wish I could do that. I'm not a good player at all, and I only play along with my onscreen music software at home. The software keeps track of where I am so I can jump back in if I get lost. I do appreciate everyone's tips and tricks and explanations. It gives me hope of someday moving up from suck-y player to really mediocre. Thank you all.

 

[sheesh]

I used to always look at my hands, then I started playing ensemble with a group that always reads. Then I had to practice and play only looking at the music.

I had this weird epiphany at one point practicing (without reading sheet music) where - if I can describe it - when I wasn't looking with my eyes at my fretting hand, I was only using my ears and it _seemed_ like my brain was paying more attention to the sound . . . I hope I am describing that experience somewhat . . .

 

[FullumMusic]

So...in the piano world, you're supposed to be able to play without looking at your fingers. Looking at your fingers is a sin, or at least a "weakness".
Is this also true in the bass world? It seems like looking at your fingers is totally fine.

And if that's the case, how do you read music while looking at your fingers?

(Hopefully this isn't a stupid question. I'm about to embark on a "music reading" journey, and I'm having trouble balancing looking at fingers vs. looking at music.)

If you still need to look at your fingers while you read, don't put the music stand & sheet music directly in front of you. Put it slightly to the side by the head of your bass so you can see the sheet music and your fingers are in your field of vision, and if you need to check your fingers it's only a slight glance down and back up again.

 

[12BitSlab]

If your eyes are glued to the notes on the page, you are reading the music incorrectly. You should be reading at least one measure ahead.

When one reads regular text, do people read each letter? Absolutely not. They read anywhere from one to four words at a time.

When a conductor is present, do the musicians look only at the notated page and never look at the conductor? Absolutely not if they want to keep their job.

If you need to occasionally look at the fretboard for whatever reason, you can do that after you’ve read ahead a measure or so.

Reading music and looking elsewhere are not mutually exclusive activities. Doing both are part and parcel of being a professional musician.

 

[mambo4]

do people read each letter? Absolutely not. They read anywhere from one to four words at a time.

You can call that "reading correctly" but reaching that level of fluency does take time an effort.
When I started it was a painfully slow process :

• look at t dots on the staff,
• Good Boys Do Fine Always and name the pitch
• locate the pitch possibilities on the neck and choose the best one
• rinse and repeat

there's no way a noob is gonna read ahead. but , through dedicated repetition, interval recognition, and separating rhythm from pitch practice, you can make progress. I'm at a point where I can read ahead with rhythm alone, but if there's pitch too I may sacrifice tempo accuracy looking at my neck.

 

[skycruiser]

You can call that "reading correctly" but reaching that level of fluency does take time an effort.
When I started it was a painfully slow process :

• look at t dots on the staff,
• Good Boys Do Fine Always and name the pitch
• locate the pitch possibilities on the neck and choose the best one
• rinse and repeat

there's no way a noob is gonna read ahead. but , through dedicated repetition, interval recognition, and separating rhythm from pitch practice, you can make progress. I'm at a point where I can read ahead with rhythm alone, but if there's pitch too I may sacrifice tempo accuracy looking at my neck.

As he said, "professional musician". That doesn't apply to all of us here. Definitely a goal to work toward though - to get good enough to look ahead.

 

[enricogaletta]

Reading music and playing bass without looking at your hands is definitely achievable, but it takes time and the right kind of practice. The key is developing a strong mental image of the fingerboard. Once you truly visualize the patterns and notes across the neck, playing without looking becomes much more natural.
One of the biggest challenges I see with students is this: when they struggle to read and feel the need to constantly check their hands, the issue is often related to fingering. Every line you read — whether simple or complex — can be played in at least two or more different positions, each with a different fingering. The goal is to find the most natural fingering for you, based on how you know the fretboard.
Each bassist sees the neck differently, so the fingering that works for me might not work for you. That’s why it’s crucial to choose positions that feel instinctive and comfortable — that way you can focus more on reading and less on navigating the instrument.
Another common mistake is trying to play at full tempo too soon. If the piece is at 120 bpm and it’s a bit challenging, don’t rush it. I always recommend starting slow, around 60–70 bpm. That slower tempo gives you space to think, visualize your fingering, and build real control. Once you feel 90% in control — without looking — you can gradually increase the speed in small steps (say, 10–20 bpm at a time).
Of course, some lines are just technically demanding. In those cases, once you’ve worked on them slowly and gained some confidence, it’s okay to use the sheet as a visual guide — not to read note by note, but just to refresh your memory while you focus on playing.
Let me know if you’d like more on this, happy to help.
Let’s Groove. Enrico