Music reading book recommendations?

[Ancientangler]

There are three or four "big bands" in my area that often have a need for an electric bassist, but it requires music reading skills. I haven't done this since high school a thousand years ago. Can anyone recommend a book or two that you've used yourself, or suggested to students? I need to get up to speed in two weeks. Or maybe a few months. I'm motivated and my eye doctor is on board with eyeglass recommendations. Seriously! That last part is true.

 

[ahbass2500]

I am reading "big bands" as Jazz. Assume that is what you mean, but if not, my comments change a little.

Depends on how you learn, but I would suggest learning songs from a book that does not have tabs. Forces you to read and does not give you the option to "check yourself" which for many turns into just reading the tab and pretending you are learning the music. I would suggest something like Standing in the Shadows of Motown as it is one of my favorites and it is tab free. However you might be better served by something that is more jazz oriented. I am not sure what that is, but hopefully someone else has a recommendation (maybe a bass clef real book?).

Do you know if these bands have written sheet music for the bassist or is it just chord charts (or a mix of both)? I have seen both and could certainly see a Jazz band asking you to improv some walking bass lines. If this is a possibility, then learning some theory and practicing improv with real/fake books is a good option.

 

[ProbablyTooLoud]

I think if you learned to read music as a kid, you don't need a beginner book or a special course.
Start with any sheet music - simple at first, of course - and it will come back.

 

[Ancientangler]

I agree about tabs. I've never found them useful and I know my way around the neck.

Jazz is the category for these bands, probably with the occasional pop tune modified for that band format. As far as the written sheet music versus chord charts, that's a question I'll have to ask a couple of the band leaders. One of the bands plays stuff that seems like it would be too complicated to distill into chord charts. One of the aforementioned bands had Charles Mingus' "Far Wells Mill Valley" on their set list last summer, and unless I'm wrong, I can't imagine how some of the timing would be written without actual sheet music.

 

[Ancientangler]

I think if you learned to read music as a kid, you don't need a beginner book or a special course.
Start with any sheet music - simple at first, of course - and it will come back.

I played alto sax in high school (late 1960s), and I'll tell you why I quit the instrument. But first, make sure you're not drinking or eating anything. Are you ready? I didn't think sax was cool.

 

[ProbablyTooLoud]

I played alto sax in high school (late 1960s), and I'll tell you why I quit the instrument. But first, make sure you're not drinking or eating anything. Are you ready? I didn't think sax was cool.

nothing wrong with being saxy

 

[SteveCS]

There are three or four "big bands" in my area that often have a need for an electric bassist, but it requires music reading skills. I haven't done this since high school a thousand years ago. Can anyone recommend a book or two that you've used yourself, or suggested to students? I need to get up to speed in two weeks. Or maybe a few months. I'm motivated and my eye doctor is on board with eyeglass recommendations. Seriously! That last part is true.

You could try something like the Bass Clef edition of Evan Tate's "250 Jazz Patterns", "Topics in Jazz Bass, Volume 1, Harmony" by Danny Ziemann, perhaps "Walking Bassics" by @Ed Fuqua, or even Jeff Berlin's "Reading Package 1", which starts at a rudimentary level but gets quite meaty by the half-way mark.

 

[OllieVT]

If you're on a time crunch, then it might be worth looking into things you can do /without/ your bass too, unless you're lucky enough to be able to pick it up and play any time of the day or night.

I'm a beginner whose childhood involved reading music briefly, but the rhythm aspects of the notation were all that stuck. I've found using the "Bass Guitar Notes" on my Android phone good for learning/reinforcing reading notes and finding them on the fretboard, and "ReadRhythm" on my iPad for practising tapping out rhythms, although I think it would teach the rhythmic side of notation well.

As good as learning from a book while playing? No. Better than nothing if you can't be playing? Maybe / I don't know / it depends / seems to help me.

You might hunt out different apps that better fit what you already know and want to learn; I just wanted to throw the possibility into the mix in case it might help and you hadn't thought about it.

 

[Ancientangler]

You could try something like the Bass Clef edition of Evan Tate's "250 Jazz Patterns", "Topics in Jazz Bass, Volume 1, Harmony" by Danny Ziemann, perhaps "Walking Bassics" by @Ed Fuqua, or even Jeff Berlin's "Reading Package 1", which starts at a rudimentary level but gets quite meaty by the half-way mark.

I just downloaded a sample of the Jeff Berlin thing at it looks very promising. Thanks for the tip.

 

[ProbablyTooLoud]

I just downloaded a sample of the Jeff Berlin thing at it looks very promising. Thanks for the tip.

Berlin posts cool etudes on his FB page all the time, too, if you can get past his incessant hammering on pet peeves.

 

[brianrost]

Can anyone recommend a book or two that you've used yourself, or suggested to students?

Books aimed at reading? This Jim Stinnett one. Jim wrote many more, 36 in all

Otherwise, just pull out a Real Book or similar and start reading

 

[skycruiser]

Set up in front of a BIG SCREEN TV or projector screen and read along with Alfred Jazz Band and Big Band charts on Youtube. (After you practice a little of course...)

A random example:



This one might be a little easier?



Hal Leonard ones available too (with a lot of modern/pop arrangements that may be fun to play).

 

[Paul New]

I play bass for a big band, and read charts all the time. Any book of walking bass transcriptions is good practice. But I might have access to a big band’s catalog on line, and that would be ideal. I will check on that.

Another option is buying charts from a dealer like J Pepper where I think you can buy single parts instead of entire scores. Could be expensive.

 

[singlemalt]

You might check out a free trial at SBL. Reading courses, genre studies, plenty of material to read at all levels. Most of it you can get rid of the tabs.

I put the music up on a large monitor, and cue up the track.

Mark at Talkingbass.com has reading courses as well.

Are the bands using paper music or tablets?

 

[Dbassmon]

There are several sites on the net that are libraries of transcriptions. You want to improve as a reader; two things; read and transcribe.

Reading Jazz charts often is a hybrid between actual note reading and chord charts with certain figures written with performance notes. Because of that, it is not all note reading, per se.

It doesn't really matter whether you are reading pure jazz charts, pop charts, whatever. The idea is to become so good at pattern recognition that you know what something sounds like before you actually play it. To do that, read anything and everything you can get your hands on. Do a google search for bass transcriptions and have at it. There is enough to keep you busy forever.

Different styles can teach you different things. Syncopations you find in Jamerson Motown parts,or Latin/Salsa/Jazz lines ala Cachau, or Sal Ceuvos are unique subset of rhythms you find very helpful in any jazz situation, especially if it stretches in fusion or world music. The Charlie Parker book for bass clef, single highhandedly improved my reading exponentially. (playing alto sax lines on electric bass, it worked out pretty well for Jaco)

Finally, transcribe parts. This is where you actually are able to understand subdivision through problem solving. A finished transcription, someone else has already parsed out the difficult rhythmic figures. When you are doing the transcribing, its on you. If it's hard, there you will learn valuable stuff.

If you spend your time and energy on "walking bass line books," you will not be exposed to many, many situational challenges you will face walking into a session, or reading latin jazz chart or a fusion chart. Follow the blue print I laid out. Let's compare notes in a couple of months.

 

[ole Jason]

There are three or four "big bands" in my area that often have a need for an electric bassist, but it requires music reading skills. I haven't done this since high school a thousand years ago. Can anyone recommend a book or two that you've used yourself, or suggested to students? I need to get up to speed in two weeks. Or maybe a few months. I'm motivated and my eye doctor is on board with eyeglass recommendations. Seriously! That last part is true.

If you contact the bands they will almost certainly have charts or materials online already for the musicians. I would recommend just starting with the stuff you're going to be playing and take note of when you run into things giving you problems and work on those parts in more detail.

There's a bigger longer term conversation to be had about overall reading fluency but if you need to get up to speed in two weeks it will be a waste of time digging into "How to read" music books. Just focus on the actual material you need to know how to play.

 

[Sam Sherry]

I've played in my full share of big bands. Currently I am allowed to play with the Portland Jazz Orchestra, which I refer to as "sixteen people with music degrees . . . and me."

a) Reading anything is better than reading nothing. Cello parts. Trombone parts. Real Book heads. Anything. It all helps.

b) Written music is a language in which several separate lines of content are presented simultaneously. Commencement of sound, duration of sound, articulation, volume and more are applied to each individual note, and to groups of notes. It's a lot to take in.

Phrased otherwise, the less you are taking in the better the chances are that you can nail (or at least reasonably approximate) the rest. For that reason I recommend hanging out with the Louis Bellson drum method, Modern Rhythms In 4/4. You can play whatever notes you like -- drone, scale, arpeggio, riff, random noise -- while working just on reading rhythms. That way when it's time to sight-read you are better able to make the rhythms work with less attention and you only have to focus hard on the other six things on the page.

c) Please indulge me in a digression. IME big-band bass parts are an unique musical experience because almost all the time they are written by people who don't know jack about how to play bass generally, how play bass in a big-band in particular, or how notate a part which will deliver whatever half-baked concept they may have. Most of the time if you see slash-chords there are a bunch of details the arranger really wanted but left out. Most of the time if you see a written-out part it's 90% unhelpful and unmusical, and your job is to craft a part on the fly while also picking out and nailing the other ten percent.

What you're supposed to do is read the chart, listen to the whole band, listen to the bass trombone, baritone sax and piano left-hand, and bring all of your experience to figure out what is going on musically, where it is likely to go and how you can build a part that will help bring that to fruition. And you're supposed to be swinging like crazy, pushing just hard enough so that everybody else has an easier time swinging too.

At its best it is unique, beautiful and joyful (and if done successfully no-one will notice). At its worst you're leaning over the porcelain throne wondering if they will let you leave early and run with no bassist.

All the best with your quest.

 

[FenderP]

I sub a lot for big bands around here and do lots of sightreading. It's something I've always been able to do. I've been playing with big bands for well over 40 years now on electric going back to 3rd or 4th grade.

A big band gig is generally not the same as a Real Book/standards one. I wouldn't suggest trying to approach it as one.

In my experience, big bands - especially community/unpaid ones - vary in skill. Some may be hot stuff like, say, the WDR Big Band. Others may be full of retirees who are just focused on fun. If it's the former, I agree with the thought that unless you were a phenomenal reader to being with, you're not getting there in two weeks.

The repertoire is also not the same in the bands - is it more of a swing/dance (i.e. 40s style) big band? Playing modern charts like Mintzer and Goodwin?

Not all parts are 100% written. Some may just have chords so if you can't make up your own lines (latin or swing/walking), you will have issues. Big band is also different than smaller ensembles/combos. It's a skill I picked up a long time ago. They are all jazz, but how to approach the bass chair can be wildly different depending on the scenario. For example, if the big band has a conductor, can you lock in with the band, read music, and keep an eye on the director, too? You have to be able to multitask.

I both agree/disagree with @Sam Sherry. Sometimes the written part under the horns is ok and has intent. Other times it's complete crap and if you have the chord and understand what the band is doing, come up with something better. If I'm subbing, the first time we play a tune and if it's all written, I'll play what's on the page. But if I hear pretty quickly the part is terribad, by the time we hit the head on a DS or something, I'm adapting. Sometimes the written part IS the part; other times it's not. You need to develop that instinct.

The bands I play with have books with hundreds of tunes. Unless they're rehearsing specific ones for a show, often times they'll randomly call charts. I'm not sure getting access to their books will be immensely helpful in all cases. This is where you need to develop the sight reading skill of being able to handle what is thrown at you.

One of the most important skills in sight reading big band charts is understanding the form - DS, DC, any repeats, solo sections (how many times/solos). Look for key, time, and time signature changes as well as written accidentals, loudness markings (don't play fortissimo in a pianissimo section), articulation marks, etc. If you know the roadmap, that is a good portion of the battle in big band bass playing.

Some big bands have two chordal players - guitar and piano. Listen for having to stay out of the way of either of them (see: left hand heavy piano players, guitar players who play in the same sonic range). The rhythm section will sound like mud otherwise.

There are quite a few times where there is no bass part and I'm given either a piano or guitar one - or have to read off theirs.

None of these will make you a reading expert but they will make you a better player in big bands.

Maybe do a lot of listening in the next few weeks to music in the style of the bands you are going to play with or get some example links from the bands themselves.

 

[Paul New]

All I've played in, both in the sax section and as a bass player, play a mix of music. In any that play primarily for dance, you're probably going to play plenty of quarter notes, but also some rockish rhythms, and plenty of Latin.

This helped me a lot with the latin stuff. Amazon.com

 

[BrotherMister]

Since he released them I’ve stuck students on a healthy diet of the Jeff Berlin reading packages. They start as simple as can be and get pretty meaty.

I posted a breakdown and review of them in another thread that is worth a read. Promise you these things work and work incredibly well.

The first two packages will keep you busy for a long time, especially if you transpose them into every key.

Standing In The Shadows Of Motown
and The Latin Bass Book will also give your reading a good workout.

If you can get access to any sort of musical theatre bass part of the modern era you’ll find these guys have started really writing for the instrument properly which has been fun to see.

Outside of that read anything and everything and not just for the bass. Often big band charts have soloistic or melodic lines written as well which I personally found easier to get to grips with in playing music written for instruments that weren’t the bass initially. Especially because most arrangers aren’t bass players so they don’t write thinking about the bass as an instrument, they just write what they think will sound nice in that voice.

Oh, and transcribe as music as possible and hand write the transcriptions. If you want to improve your reading skills then start writing as well!