Tab as a memory aid

[Acoustic356]

I usually will have Nashville Number System charts for songs that I'm loose on. I usually know the song form, but may miss some changes or interesting twists.

It doesn't tell you note for note, but it helps with the song form.

I recently had to learn 26 songs in 2 weeks for a new band. That's pretty much how I walked into the first rehearsal after having the set list for 5 days. They thought I learned all the songs... lol

Of course I go back and learn the more iconic lines... but it gets you by in a bar gig...

 

[Smooth_bass88]

Playing some rock songs with a "nyc school of rock" adult group. Memorizing the songs, using various methods including YouTube bass cover videos (very enlightening).

Need a memory aid when I'm not totally secure with a song, don't want to watch the whole video again, am playing with others etc. Up till now I was just writing down the chord changes. Problem is the chord changes don't always jog my memory, especially since they don't tell you what string/fret to start on, and often when I have that, the rest comes automatically.

Lately I've been jotting down a very rudimentary form of tab, with mainly the roots for every chord change and sometimes a few other notes to remind me of a riff.

Just curious, anybody else do anything like this? Any other systems?

Michael

What songs and music are we talking about here? I would VERY STRONGLY recommend that you stay far and away from 'tabs' and/or youtube videos tutorials. Instead, focus on memorizing the notes on the fretboard and learn songs by ear. This is how you will develop your ear. Eventually, you will become really good at this at which point it's like riding a bike or speaking english.

 

[mjnyc]

When I asked my original question, I didn't mean to start a general tab discussion

I understand that learning a song by ear is the best way to internalize it.
I certainly do listen to songs while learning them and try to figure out some notes i'm playing by ear.

But in any case, once a song has been learned and well memorized, how does one recall it while playing?
It seems to me if you're playing from "muscle memory", essentially remembering the actual fretboard notes you're playing, you're actually playing an internalized tab. I assume in this case you're not visualizing a score but rather points on the fretboard which are, in fact, tab. Same I would assume for a clarinet player who has learned a part and remembers the fingering for that part, that's a sort of clarinet tab too.

Of course if you play by hearing the line you want to play in your head and knowing where those notes are, that's different (and probably ideal), but I would think not everyone does that. And of course internalized tab isn't exactly the same thing as written tab...

I hope this doesn't fire up a long-standing controversy.

Michael

 

[mambo4]

once a song has been learned and well memorized, how does one recall it while playing? It seems to me if you're playing from "muscle memory", essentially remembering the actual fretboard notes you're playing, you're actually playing an internalized tab.

In my gigging days I had some songs memorized as you describe: only as the physical execution. If I were asked what chord progression I was playing, I would take a second to reverse engineer the tune. But as I began to always write out my own charts, I Internalized the chord progressions as well, and thus always knew what notes I was playing.

The more you practice arpeggios and "chordy" riffs and phrases, the more they become the simpler way to "memorize" a tune. Even in note for note tribute covers, I feel this approach is useful as a memory aid. It's another bonus to creating your own charts: you force yourself to understand the chord progression as well, and how the bass line supports the chords - you learn more "chordy" riffs and phrases for your musical vocabulary.

--

when you get down to it there are 4 important ways to "know" a phrase or tune:

1. how it sounds
2. how to execute it physically
3. the names of the notes /keys /scales /chords involved - the theory
4. how it is notated

While we can get away with only 1&2, Each avenue of understanding is valuable and reveals aspects of the music that the others do not. The more of these avenues you can put to the task, the better your understanding and memorization will be.

 

[Acoustic356]

@mjnyc, the goal when playing music is to stay in the moment. When I'm learning a song, I may be thinking about the chord, the chord quality, etc... but when I'm on stage, I want to be able to pay attention to my band, my mood, the crowd... I want to be in the moment...

I can't stay in "that moment" if I'm thinking about tab, or what notes to play, etc.

"Trust your training" trust your ears, trust your fingers...

Sometimes I hear different fills and want to play them... sometimes I feel the groove differently...

The magic happens when you're there expecting it to happen and not getting wrapped around the axel of "am I playing the right notes."

 

[thunesBARROW]

Anything (even tabs) that helps you play better and enjoy music is a good thing!

That being said, I’d also say to spend the time getting more familiar with lead sheets and standard notation so you don’t have to rely solely on tab.

 

[logdrum]

Tab in one form or another has been around forever. The difference between piano and guitar / bass is that there is exactly one way to play a phrase or chord that is written out in standard notation. Sure maybe some slight fingering variations, but C3 E3 G3 is played in one place on a piano. On guitar that chord can be played in several locations so notation only tells part of the story. Tab will tell you where to play the chord and it will be a setup to play the next chord in a certain location. Of course this doesn't apply to just chugging away on an acoustic doing a three chord song. Talking more about a jazz chart or finger style intricate lines. Jazz will usually not have tab, but those guys/gals are monsters. Woodwinds/brass, other than some alternate fingerings will have one way to play lines that are written out.

This page has a pic of some tab from 1554. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tablature

Where in my post did I say that tab is younger than standard notation. Also you can put 8va 8vb or same other notes to tell the piano player to play at what octave. Tab is valid form of notation. All I said was I do not like it. Because I play woodwind, bow the upright - I'd rather read EB using standard notation also

Also if you do play woodwind there are alternate fingering for certain notes. even before you go to altissimo. For example altissimo G on a sax can be reached using 12 to 16 fingerings. How are you supposed to put that in tablature. Brass players have to do almost everything using the harmonic series, again not tab-able.

 

[logdrum]

Not the same as post #33 pointed out very well.
Also TAB has been around since 1600 or so.

I still do not like it even if we are limit to just string instruments. I do not see how I can notate arrangements with it. I did not say that tablature is younger than standard notation. Where are you both getting that?

 

[MultiScaleMale]

Where in my post did I say that tab is younger than standard notation. Also you can put 8va 8vb or same other notes to tell the piano player to play at what octave. Tab is valid form of notation. All I said was I do not like it. Because I play woodwind, bow the upright - I'd rather read EB using standard notation also

Also if you do play woodwind there are alternate fingering for certain notes. even before you go to altissimo. For example altissimo G on a sax can be reached using 12 to 16 fingerings. How are you supposed to put that in tablature. Brass players have to do almost everything using the harmonic series, again not tab-able.

You mentioned using standard notation for hundreds of years and I established that we've used tab for hundreds of years as well. I also mentioned alternate fingerings for wind instruments. And my point is that standard notation is great for piano, wind instruments, and others where you play a note (mostly) one way. So you only need to establish the pitch and the rhythm which is perfect for standard notation. Guitar has the same note in multiple locations on the fretboard and tab provides the suggested fingerings so that you can play the chord in a shape that your fingers can actually create. That can be important for bass, but we mostly play monophonic lines so you don't get "stuck" like you might playing 4-5 note chords on guitar.

 

[Papageno]

You mentioned using standard notation for hundreds of years and I established that we've used tab for hundreds of years as well. I also mentioned alternate fingerings for wind instruments. And my point is that standard notation is great for piano, wind instruments, and others where you play a note (mostly) one way. So you only need to establish the pitch and the rhythm which is perfect for standard notation. Guitar has the same note in multiple locations on the fretboard and tab provides the suggested fingerings so that you can play the chord in a shape that your fingers can actually create. That can be important for bass, but we mostly play monophonic lines so you don't get "stuck" like you might playing 4-5 note chords on guitar.

It is quite straightforward to include fingerings in standard music notation wherever necessary. Once you have indicated on which string a note is to be played there is enough information to know exactly where to play it (unless the player does not know his/her fingerboard); further information may be guven about which finger to use, if necessary. The important thing is that is a personal choice of the player, that will vary from player to player; so the best is if sheet music is provided without fingering, and fingerings can be added by the player according to his/her needs and choices. With tabs, such choices are imposed to the player, for no good reason, and are also not a good substitute for fingering, as it does not specify which finger to use.

A further point about standard notation is that it enables to communicate among musicians playing different instruments, unlike tabs. Not a small feat!

Can you sight sing music written in tabs?

Finally tabs are not particularly convenient to display clearly the harmonic structure of the music (how do you distinguish between Eb and D#?). Identifying chords in standard notation is made much easier due to its visual characteristics.

How do you transpose to another key in tabs?

 

[Les Fret]

I still do not like it even if we are limit to just string instruments. I do not see how I can notate arrangements with it.

The OP was asking to use tab as memory aid, not for arrangements. It doesn’t matter if you like it or not. It might be helpful to other people.

 

[MultiScaleMale]

It is quite straightforward to include fingerings in standard music notation wherever necessary. Once you have indicated on which string a note is to be played there is enough information to know exactly where to play it (unless the player does not know his/her fingerboard); further information may be guven about which finger to use, if necessary. The important thing is that is a personal choice of the player, that will vary from player to player; so the best is if sheet music is provided without fingering, and fingerings can be added by the player according to his/her needs and choices. With tabs, such choices are imposed to the player, for no good reason, and are also not a good substitute for fingering, as it does not specify which finger to use.

A further point about standard notation is that it enables to communicate among musicians playing different instruments, unlike tabs. Not a small feat!

Can you sight sing music written in tabs?

Finally tabs are not particularly convenient to display clearly the harmonic structure of the music (how do you distinguish between Eb and D#?). Identifying chords in standard notation is made much easier due to its visual characteristics.

How do you transpose to another key in tabs?

It’s not an exclusive either / or:

 

[Papageno]

It’s not an exclusive either / or:

View attachment 4536357

You're absolutely right on this: those "notation+tabs" editions are quite frequent (though mostly for beginner stuff, not advanced material). I am not sure though if they are really useful: do the people prefering tabs really benefit from having also the music notation? And vice-versa? As for myself I usually avoids such editions as the tabs are just a visual disturbance for me. I believe they are there because publishers are reluctant of making separate editions (which I can understand), not because people prefer to have them. It is also largely a genre specific issue: such dual "notation+tabs" are very common for rock, blues, etc., whereas for jazz, you get almost exclusively standard music notation.

(full disclosure: I suck miserably at reading tabs, whereas with standard notation, I can hear what I read, and also play it on the fly, unless it is really complicated stuff...)

 

[MultiScaleMale]

You're absolutely right on this: those "notation+tabs" editions are quite frequent (though mostly for beginner stuff, not advanced material). I am not sure though if they are really useful: do the people prefering tabs really benefit from having also the music notation? And vice-versa? As for myself I usually avoids such editions as the tabs are just a visual disturbance for me. I believe they are there because publishers are reluctant of making separate editions (which I can understand), not because people prefer to have them. It is also largely a genre specific issue: such dual "notation+tabs" are very common for rock, blues, etc., whereas for jazz, you get almost exclusively standard music notation.

(full disclosure: I suck miserably at reading tabs, whereas with standard notation, I can hear what I read, and also play it on the fly, unless it is really complicated stuff...)

I can read standard notation perfectly well. I've made a stash of about 1500 charts from Ultimate Guitar .gpx/3/4/5 or powertab files, imported into GuitarPro and then exported as PDF. For most of those files I've printed as standard / TAB as above mainly for the purpose of if I need to give charts to someone to cover for me, I know they'll be able to read the TAB if not the standard notation. Ultimate Guitar tabs have a varying degree of quality, but sometimes if I'm playing something that is a little more intricate I'll take a glance at the TAB to see what position they played it in. Any jazz chart that I have is in standard notation. Unless it's a solo, they're usually easy to sightread.

 

[Unmost]

Some of you seem to forget that anyone can understand how tabs work after a 2 minute course on the subject. It’s fast and easy, that’s the whole point.

 

[Papageno]

Some of you seem to forget that anyone can understand how tabs work after a 2 minute course on the subject. It’s fast and easy, that’s the whole point.

Right, but on TB you find lots of players saying that they have been playing for decades, and that they would like to start reading standard notation. If tabs did not exist, they would be reading music for decades, and be able to communicate with pianists, sax players, singers, etc. For some people, reliance on tabs seems to be an obstacle to some more advanced music proficiency. I don't say it is bad; everyone can chose what suits them best; I just find it puzzling. Somehow, it is like using phonetic writing, instead of learning proper spelling and syntax; it is faster, but using proper syntax enables to understand and be understood better, and to articulate more elaborate discourse.

 

[Les Fret]

Right, but on TB you find lots of players saying that they have been playing for decades, and that they would like to start reading standard notation. If tabs did not exist, they would be reading music for decades, and be able to communicate with pianists, sax players, singers, etc. For some people, reliance on tabs seems to be an obstacle to some more advanced music proficiency. I don't say it is bad; everyone can chose what suits them best; I just find it puzzling. Somehow, it is like using phonetic writing, instead of learning proper spelling and syntax; it is faster, but using proper syntax enables to understand and be understood better, and to articulate more elaborate discourse.

Best is to learn both tab and standard notation and chord charts. That being said there are many great musicians who don’t read at all. Only thing what matters is what comes out, not if someone can read or not.