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The best book for sighting reading

Righteous Thunderer

Righteous Thunderer

Jan 25, 2010
726
24
#1
I'm sure that there's a lot of threads that have tidbits here and there, and I did use the search function but didn't really find a solid source of info, so I'm just going to ask it outright:

This question is for those of you who have a solid capability at reading music and learned from a book. What book did you use/would you recommend?

I would like very much to play bass for the Army, but there's a LOT of reading involved. I have some simple "Learn to play bass" type books, but they really aren't all that great because they don't have very much practice material in them. Any recommendations out there?
 
#2
A classic I always see is the 'Standing in the Shadows of Motown" Book outlining many of James Jamerson's bass lines. Thanks to his innovative approach to playing there is some challenging reading to be had with loads of syncopated 16th note rhythms with plenty of ties to trip up on. Only problem is the lines are so great you'll end up knowing them rather than reading them. After playing some small time musicals recently I'm in the market for a load more reading material so will follow this feed with interest!
 
#3
I would just buy the bass clef real book and open the book randomly to different tunes and sight read them. You got a lot of tunes in a real book so its not likely that you will get a repeat...helping your reading more.
 
#5
if you cant read at all, get the hal leonard books 1-3 written by ed friedland. itll get you thinking about the staff in small chunks and thinking about positions and position shifts. just opening up anything in bass clef and trying to read is a great way to get overwhelmed and frustrated if you have no reading experience.
 
#6
narud said:
if you cant read at all, get the hal leonard books 1-3 written by ed friedland. itll get you thinking about the staff in small chunks and thinking about positions and position shifts. just opening up anything in bass clef and trying to read is a great way to get overwhelmed and frustrated if you have no reading experience.
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I was looking at these online and considering getting them, anyone else have luck with them?
 
#7
Righteous Thunderer said:
I was looking at these online and considering getting them, anyone else have luck with them?
Click to expand...

I couldnt read anything period before I got those books, so simple to learn if you put the time in going through the lessons.

They are laid out in a great order so it doesnt even seem hard when you have never read anything before.

The first book will cover up to the fifth fret on each string and just general stuff like knowing where the notes are, basic rhythms, 1/8th notes, syncopation, etc.

The second book starts getting into more common rhythms, scales, triads, scale sequences, etc.

I havent got to the third book yet myself, I am taking actual lessons now but still find I learn just as much from these books as I do a live instructor (in different ways).

The play along tracks for the exercises are really good too, not just boring play alongs, they actually sound good.

Considering you can get all 3 books for more or less the cost of 1 or 2 live lessons I would say go for it, I highly doubt you will be dissapointed.

I have no affiliation with those books whatsoever but I recommend them to absolutely everyone I talk to that wants to learn bass. I have over 30 bass books that I have bought over the past few years (including play alongs, etc. Not just method books) and these ones were the cheapest out of them and the ones I use the most.

Some of the other beginner ones I have (by no means am I saying they are bad books I just find the ed friedland ones so much easier to learn from and are laid out way better).

Fast Track Bass - Book 1 and 2 (Not bad but I find you have to practice each example with a metronome instead of the play along track as some of them are pretty fast and I find I just memorize the exercise instead of actually reading it note for note. I dont find I really took anything out of this book that I use in my playing, was good practice exercises though to run through every now and then)

How to play bass by Gary turner - has some good lessons but they are crammed together, really short play along tracks again unless you loop them. Its pretty good as a more intermediate book though)

Alfred Play bass - This book is pretty good as well but I find I use it more of a reference, it has a crazy amount of info in going into modes, different music styles, progressions, etc.

If there are other specific books you are looking at I can try giving you a quick run down as I most likely have them but those are the ones I find I use the most for learning to sight read.
 
#8
Oh and if you do go with the ed friedland series, it sounds like you are already a fairly decent player and know what you are doing so I would not bother with the package that comes with the dvd. I bought it and it would be great for an absolute beginner but if you are beyond that stage then I would say save the 20 bucks or so.
 
#9
I'm glad to hear that those are some good books, it's what I'm leaning towards. I'm also glad to hear that other people have issues with simply memorizing the exercise rather than continuing to learn from it; that's my big issue with the books I've got right now.
 
#10
+1 for the Ed Friedland books. I bought the one with all three volumes in one book and couldn't be happier. It was cheap and Ed really gets things going simply, but it progresses quickly.

I have communicated with Ed one or twice via his YouTube channel and this was partly a deciding factor in buying the Hal Leonard series. I have since bought a few more of Ed's books , though I haven't gotten to them yet.

I have also purchased standing in the shadows of Motown book , but have decided to put It on the back burner for a little while... I still have some work and some review to do befor I go there.

If there were ONE book to get, I would recommend the Hal Leonard series book.
Made all the difference for me and you will be reading in no time.
 
#11
bassgrooves2 said:
+1 for the Ed Friedland books. I bought the one with all three volumes in one book and couldn't be happier. It was cheap and Ed really gets things going simply, but it progresses quickly.

I have communicated with Ed one or twice via his YouTube channel and this was partly a deciding factor in buying the Hal Leonard series. I have since bought a few more of Ed's books , though I haven't gotten to them yet.

I have also purchased standing in the shadows of Motown book , but have decided to put It on the back burner for a little while... I still have some work and some review to do befor I go there.

If there were ONE book to get, I would recommend the Hal Leonard series book.
Made all the difference for me and you will be reading in no time.
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Not just on his youtube channel, he posts on here often. If you do a search for ed friedland or hal leonard method there are a lot of big posts about his books and he answers any questions you have about them.
 
#12
After researching lots of books on the subject, I have found that some of the best books for improving sight-reading are...............sight-singing books. I know lots of people start cringing at this idea as they hear the "Sound of Music" in there head, buts these books are very thurough. Here's why:

1) They usually start with very easy melodies, and the progressively get harder and harder, and fully explore all key signatures. Also, the melodies are usually short enough to memorize, so you can practice transposing by ear over to other keys.

2) They usually include lots of theory as they progressively explore melodies that outline tonic, dominant, subdminant, secondary dominants, minor keys, borrowed chords, etc, all thew way up through 12 tone rows.

3) They thoroughly explore all different types of rhythms and time signatures.

The only slight disadvantage in the beginning they have is that they usually have more treble clef exercises than bass clef, but then again, you can practice transcribing these over to bass clef as additional practice.
 
#13
Try to find some big band bass charts and read them. Also stage play charts, too. Both of these are more like what you will be reading - in armed service bands, you will reading a lot of big band type stuff. Sammy Nestico's "Wind Machine" is a good example. Rent's "Santa Fe" is another.

"Standing in the Shadows ---" is excellent for learning to read funk and soul. So is Carol Kaye's stuff, too. Dig up a book on how to play slap bass, to learn the notation for slap style. Smandl for bass, is a must, learn an etude or two. Bach transcriptions for bass are great. Learn to read the heads in the Real Book in both treble and bass clef. Make sure you know your jazz standards well, and can transpose them on demand. See if you can find a local big band to play with, and maybe volunteer for stage play pit band work, to get you up to speed.

Spend time writing down what you are playing, even if it is a simple shuffle. This is a big help is learning to read in phrases, instead of notes, and will help you recognize common rhythm patterns and styles when you see them on a page.
 
#14
Righteous Thunderer said:
This question is for those of you who have a solid capability at reading music and learned from a book. What book did you use/would you recommend?
Click to expand...

I started reading in 1974. I didn't learn from any specific book; rather, I learned from every piece of music put in front of me. Just get anything you can lay your hands on. Start really slow. It is an accomplishment to learn to read Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. Indeed, it is.

Go from there. Absorb as much as you can, and seek good teaching when you cannot.
 
#15
I learned the fundamentals of reading from Simandl however my reading capability that allows me to show up to a gig and play what's written comes from getting involved in real time playing situations that require reading such as community theater and community orchestras and big bands. You're going to go but so far with reading sitting in the practice room.
 
#16
Here's another recommendation for the Hal Leonard books 1-3 written by Ed Friedland.

I've been playing for years but for the last month or so I've been working on learning how to read. I started with another book, The Bassist's Link to Sight-Reading, but ended up switching over to Ed's books after a week or so, since I wanted more playalong tracks to work with.

Ed's books are great. Perfectly paced, great playalong tracks, everything you need to know is introduced in a nice readable clear format. Lots of exercises right from the start to sink your teeth into.

There are also some companion books "Easy Pop Basslines" that look good. There are three different levels that correspond to the three different levels of the Hal/Ed books. I just ordered the first two books so I'd have more beginner-level stuff to practice along with the playalong tracks.
 
#17
The crappiest part of my situation is that I live in the middle of a desert in SoCal and don't have opportunities to play with other musicians; there is zero "scene" here, everyone goes like an hour away for such things and I don't have the time nor the gas money for such things. I have to do with what I've got, unfortunately.
 
#18
The absolute quickest way to start sight-reading in 1st position is to get "sight reading for the bass" by Ron Velosky. Teaches the natural notes in first position and then you can move on to sheet music from there adding sharps and flats. Much easier and friendlier than simandyl IMO.

It teaches 3 notes at a time which is more natural for the brain. Good luck. I'm sure it is easily accessible online. Sight reading is really rewarding once you get started. Even just 20 minutes a day, you will get there in no time :)
 
#19
77stingray said:
The absolute quickest way to start sight-reading in 1st position is to get "sight reading for the bass" by Ron Velosky. Teaches the natural notes in first position and then you can move on to sheet music from there adding sharps and flats. Much easier and friendlier than simandyl IMO.

It teaches 3 notes at a time which is more natural for the brain. Good luck. I'm sure it is easily accessible online. Sight reading is really rewarding once you get started. Even just 20 minutes a day, you will get there in no time :)
Click to expand...

I've found that to be absolutely true; I'm fairly decent at reading in the first position and feel this enormous feeling of accomplishment every time I read something successfully, I'd say bigger than nailing a bassline that I've been working on.
 

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