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Missing out by not being able to read music?

#101
Lichtaffen said:
Plus, if you have a musical idea you don't have to set up the recorder, just write it down.
Click to expand...

Exactly..that is the next level of composition too. Thats when you are at a higher level.

A lot of people who produce rely on quantized performance and MIDI nowadays. Imagine being a composer centuries ago and able to hear music in your head just by reading it or writing it down.

It obviously still is done. I find that to be the best evidence of why standard notation is still the best way.
 
#102
Febs said:
Can you show me a way, using the grid-based tab you used in your earlier example, to notate that melody so that our musician friend can play it accurately?
Click to expand...

Well, you've not defined what you do and don't want to see there... and I don't remember the key, but let's start with:

--------------------------
0-0-0-5-5-5-2~~~----------
----------------3~~~------
--------------------3~~~--

and you tell me what's missing, and we'll see if we can fix it!
 
#104
Dieps17 said:
I've been struggling with this question and perhaps there are more bass players with the same concern. Am i missing too much out by not being able to read music fluently? I feel like i am, i feel like if i did id be able to grab anything in any style and "rock the world" o.O
Any thoughts?
Click to expand...

None of the Beatles read music fluently.

Know chords, know some theory, and develop a good ear and you will do fine.

Reading is good for learning a song ... but to play with feeling you get rid of the sheet music.
 
#105
SactoBass said:
I remember sometime back in the 80's going to see Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman, and Howe. Chris Squire was not in the group at the time.

They had some guy playing all of Chris' bass parts. The guy just stood in one spot on stage and played everything from sheet music. Close to the Edge, And You and I, Starship Trooper, you name it, he just played it from sheet music.

I'm sure those of you who feel strongly about the ability to read sheet music will quickly latch onto that story use it as "proof" of how important it is to be able to read sheet music since that skill enabled that guy to fill in for Squire. And you will proclaim that if it wasn't for him having that skill, there would have been no concert at all. Yeah, I get that.

However, my perspective differs.

I thought the guy on bass looked like a total dweeb standing there on stage playing from sheet music. In fact, I think it was Jeff Berlin, although I didn't know who that was at the time. To me, he was just some goofus who played from sheet music. In an orchestra, I suppose that's fine. But at a progressive rock concert? Gee, how exciting. (yawn)

Having played in a YES tribute band, I knew every single note by heart. So does Chris, obviously.

It was at that moment that I thanked my lucky stars that I never put those crutches on me as a young bassist 40 years ago when I started playing, but rather I learned to play by ear and decipher notes from the recordings which planted those notes in my head, and enabled me to have fun playing those notes on stage without the crutches of needing printed material propped in front of me.

Everyone is different. If you read, and like it, then you get on out there and you rock that world with your sheet music and enjoy life to its fullest! Go man go!

For me, I'll be the guy on stage without the crutches, thank you very much!
Click to expand...

The inside story about that was that Tony Levin had done the album and was slated to do the tour. He did some dates and became very ill and Bill Bruford (who had worked with Jeff in his band) recommended Jeff. Jeff had less than a week to prepare the show. The charts saved his butt-even if he is Jeff Berlin!
I heard an interesting interview with the Broadway contractor and Bassist John Miller at the first Bass Player Live. He said that after they announced the Tommy on Broadway auditions he was deluged with people who had played in Who tribute bands and knew all the parts note for note. He responded, "OK, that's good. Now we need you to transpose this song to Gb for the vocalist and there's three bars of 5/4 for the dancers here. Can you do it?"
Here's his interview:
http://www.johnmillerbass.com/media_video_presentation.html
 
#106
Ric5 said:
None of the Beatles read music fluently.

Know chords, know some theory, and develop a good ear and you will do fine.
Click to expand...

I agree with this.

It's if/when you want to take it up a level you will want to read music.

If you can learn to read music early in your learning you will already be ahead of the curve. Trust me, I wish I started reading early, but it can hamper a young teen who just wants to play megadeth songs with his friends, so I get it.
 
#108
Ric5 said:
None of the Beatles read music fluently.

Know chords, know some theory, and develop a good ear and you will do fine.

Reading is good for learning a song ... but to play with feeling you get rid of the sheet music.
Click to expand...

They were smart enough to link up with Sir George Martin as a producer who did indeed read and write very well and who made a lot of Sergeant Pepper, Revolver and Abbey Road sound the way it did.
 
#109
SactoBass said:
I remember sometime back in the 80's going to see Anderson, Bruford, Wakeman, and Howe. Chris Squire was not in the group at the time.

They had some guy playing all of Chris' bass parts. The guy just stood in one spot on stage and played everything from sheet music. Close to the Edge, And You and I, Starship Trooper, you name it, he just played it from sheet music.

I'm sure those of you who feel strongly about the ability to read sheet music will quickly latch onto that story use it as "proof" of how important it is to be able to read sheet music since that skill enabled that guy to fill in for Squire. And you will proclaim that if it wasn't for him having that skill, there would have been no concert at all. Yeah, I get that.

However, my perspective differs.

I thought the guy on bass looked like a total dweeb standing there on stage playing from sheet music. In fact, I think it was Jeff Berlin, although I didn't know who that was at the time. To me, he was just some goofus who played from sheet music. In an orchestra, I suppose that's fine. But at a progressive rock concert? Gee, how exciting. (yawn)

Having played in a YES tribute band, I knew every single note by heart. So does Chris, obviously.

It was at that moment that I thanked my lucky stars that I never put those crutches on me as a young bassist 40 years ago when I started playing, but rather I learned to play by ear and decipher notes from the recordings which planted those notes in my head, and enabled me to have fun playing those notes on stage without the crutches of needing printed material propped in front of me.

Everyone is different. If you read, and like it, then you get on out there and you rock that world with your sheet music and enjoy life to its fullest! Go man go!

For me, I'll be the guy on stage without the crutches, thank you very much!
Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure that Jeff Berlin could have memorized Squire's bass lines if he had time to do so, but it's my understanding that he was called in as a last minute sub at the end of that tour because Tony Levin was too sick to perform, and the only reason he was able to do the gig (and the band didn't have to cancel the shows) is because Jeff Berlin is a monster player and a monster reader. That's not playing with crutches. That's being a complete player in every sense of the word.
 
#115
Ric5 said:
None of the Beatles read music fluently.

Know chords, know some theory, and develop a good ear and you will do fine.

Reading is good for learning a song ... but to play with feeling you get rid of the sheet music.
Click to expand...

...and I think Paul ended up doing fairly well if I recall. I don't think he needs to clip coupons, although he did venture into the world of mashed potatoes for a bit...

 
#118
lowfreqgeek said:
Points of reference for one. How does one translate that to trumpet or Clarinet, or cello? That is absolutely meaningless the way you wrote it.
Click to expand...

The discussion I was having with Febs is about the representation of *timing*. What else do you think should be shown from a timing point of view? Maybe it can be added.

One thing that is missing is bar lines, which I often put in my own tabs.
 
#120
I think one of the things I admire so much about humans is their passionate inner need to try their best to negate something someone else said that is of a different opinion than theirs.

I lost interest in doing that. 30 years ago when I was in my 20's, I felt the need to do that. Somewhere along my 40's, the light bulb went on, and I realized there was no such need.

I express my opinions.

I respect all others' opinions, whether or not they align with mine.

Enjoy life. It's short.
 

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