Can anyone give me a suggestion on a sight reading book. I am primarily a jazz player who needs to get there reading chops up. I know rhythms and notes it's just combining them that gets me. So something intermediate would be helpful.
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Double Bass Sight reading.
- Thread starter HunterBrodt
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Those are good, I also like the Dotzauer cello method (prettier music and wider range).
Since this is in the orchestra sub-forum I would suggest printing off a part to any symphony by anybody on imslp, bumping a recording, preferably through some nice speakers but headphones are just fine, and play along. Don't stop the recording no matter how many times you mess up or get lost. Not the best for developing good playing habits but great sight-reading training.
While I'm no bass expert (yet), I had my studies many years ago on violin, and I was not good at sight reading, which made me go through tense moments playing in the school orchestra. The best solution, that worked for me, is very easy: take whatever music book you have at hand, the uglier the better, (solfege methods are ugly enough, especially the old ones), and just read it.
If it's not in bass clef, no problem, just use it like it was actually in bass clef. It works, for me.
Of course, using the fake book, as suggested here, also works. In the end, you just need to read.
If it's not in bass clef, no problem, just use it like it was actually in bass clef. It works, for me.
Of course, using the fake book, as suggested here, also works. In the end, you just need to read.
you also have to be able to read in the treble and tenor clef.
That is where it starts getting complicated all those clefs together in one piece.
Although you won't find the tenor clef in jazz so much I guess.
The Simandl method books are not that great for sight reading I think since most pieces have very little rhythmic variety. They are good for learning your positions though.
I think the most practical for jazz is playing the tunes heads in bass and treble clef.
That is where it starts getting complicated all those clefs together in one piece.
Although you won't find the tenor clef in jazz so much I guess.
The Simandl method books are not that great for sight reading I think since most pieces have very little rhythmic variety. They are good for learning your positions though.
I think the most practical for jazz is playing the tunes heads in bass and treble clef.
The realbooks are a good start.
But anything will do , really.
The Charlie Parker Omnibook is good too as it goes from simple to quite hard.
A short list of suggestions, all bowed -
Wohlfahrt Studies, that consolidate your reading in lower positions where the music is mostly within the 5 ledger lines of bass clef. Lots of string crossing and you can also use different bowings. Increasing the speed is an option for increasing the difficulty.
Simandl 30 Etudes, can be rather boring but encourages longer bow stokes.
Slama, 66 Etudes in all keys, warms you up on scales then goes to Major and minor exercises.
Sturm, 110 Studies, Volume 1. I like this book because many of the exercises are like moderately difficult passages found in orchestral parts. The exercises are short and mostly interesting, requiring dynamics and phrasing.
Lee, 12 Studies. These employ a lot of slurring but are not difficult to read.
Learning to read fluently is perhaps a two-part process, note recognition and training your eye movements.
If note recognition is still a problem then first call out loud the names of the notes. Later call them out as you play. This whacks them into your head faster than any other way I have found and helps make higher notes and Tenor and Treble Clefs easier to read.
Try observing your eye movement patterns as you read aloud out of a book. Success comes from similar scanning ahead of your movements as you play.
The first two books will help train your eyes to keep scanning ahead of your fingers. Choose the slowest tempo that you can read continuously without mistakes. Start the eyes moving ahead before you commence playing and don't let them stop or look back. The hands will quickly run out of messages from the brain if you do.
The later books are only moderately difficult and require you to scan above and below the stave for all the other messages like speed, dynamics and expression.
It takes patience but you will get there and you will be a more versatile and valuable musician.
Best Wishes,
DP
Wohlfahrt Studies, that consolidate your reading in lower positions where the music is mostly within the 5 ledger lines of bass clef. Lots of string crossing and you can also use different bowings. Increasing the speed is an option for increasing the difficulty.
Simandl 30 Etudes, can be rather boring but encourages longer bow stokes.
Slama, 66 Etudes in all keys, warms you up on scales then goes to Major and minor exercises.
Sturm, 110 Studies, Volume 1. I like this book because many of the exercises are like moderately difficult passages found in orchestral parts. The exercises are short and mostly interesting, requiring dynamics and phrasing.
Lee, 12 Studies. These employ a lot of slurring but are not difficult to read.
Learning to read fluently is perhaps a two-part process, note recognition and training your eye movements.
If note recognition is still a problem then first call out loud the names of the notes. Later call them out as you play. This whacks them into your head faster than any other way I have found and helps make higher notes and Tenor and Treble Clefs easier to read.
Try observing your eye movement patterns as you read aloud out of a book. Success comes from similar scanning ahead of your movements as you play.
The first two books will help train your eyes to keep scanning ahead of your fingers. Choose the slowest tempo that you can read continuously without mistakes. Start the eyes moving ahead before you commence playing and don't let them stop or look back. The hands will quickly run out of messages from the brain if you do.
The later books are only moderately difficult and require you to scan above and below the stave for all the other messages like speed, dynamics and expression.
It takes patience but you will get there and you will be a more versatile and valuable musician.
Best Wishes,
DP
Please forgive me for not knowing the terms in english, but:
From my experience, sight reading is more of recognizing the "figures". Basically such common as two 1/8th notes, one dotted 1/8th connected to a 1/16th, a quater-triad, etc. Once you've played these, you recognize them and can instanly form up the way you want to play them in your head. It's similar to how when you learn to read out lout "primavista", by recognizing the words and simply pronouncing them, avoiding the part of figuring out what is written and trying to pronounce it.
From my experience, sight reading is more of recognizing the "figures". Basically such common as two 1/8th notes, one dotted 1/8th connected to a 1/16th, a quater-triad, etc. Once you've played these, you recognize them and can instanly form up the way you want to play them in your head. It's similar to how when you learn to read out lout "primavista", by recognizing the words and simply pronouncing them, avoiding the part of figuring out what is written and trying to pronounce it.
Anything will do.
The omnibook is alright , the realbook is alright or anything at all that has dots on it is alright with the realbook having the obvious benefit of relevant repertoire.
keep in mind though that playing stuff that you already know by scores is not going to help you develop your sight-reading skills. Even stuff you've heard makes it alot easier - so I'd reccomend a jazz player to look outside the realbook repertoare as he/she most likely already heard many of them and know many like the back of their hand. But as long as it's stuff that you never played or heard, by all means, be it realbook or whatever.
(of course, in the very beginning, playing stuff you kind-of know makes things easier so that you can correct yourself and learn faster)
(of course, in the very beginning, playing stuff you kind-of know makes things easier so that you can correct yourself and learn faster)
I enjoy Sturm, 110 Studies, Volume 1. It's challenging material (for me at least) and very musical.
Also John Patitucci - 60 Melodic Etudes, and Josef Emanuel Storch - 57 Etudes for Contrabass are worth checking out imo.
Also John Patitucci - 60 Melodic Etudes, and Josef Emanuel Storch - 57 Etudes for Contrabass are worth checking out imo.
Just remember, to sight read means to read music and play the bass at the same time. Start with simple material, so you can divide your attention between what you are reading and what you are playing and then slowly speed up that process. Avoid the "deer in the headlights" starring at the page while your technique falls apart and the music you play is not what you read!
Check out some drum books. Also Louis Bellson's rhythm books are great. Also learning solfege will help too. The omnibook is good and so is the real book but I think some time spent clapping rhythms and singing away from the bass will help you get going quicker. After all, the notes are not the challenge it is the rhythms they are put in unless you are still at the good boys do fine always or every good boy does fine stage. Worked for me but this is just my 2¢
+ 100! One of my students hurt himself earlier this year, I just brought over orchestral excerpts and we just sat and counted out loud for the whole lesson.
Both he and I made huge improvements - my reading has never been better!
