How to Read Music
Posted on August 2, 2007
Filed Under Tabs - Understanding |
How do you read music? - Jeff
Jeff,
Explaining how to read music via e-mail would be rather difficult. Basically it’s like learning a language where the letters (notes) indicate time and pitch - how long to sustain a note and how high or low the note sounds.
I’ve attached a page from my book Foundations for Great Guitar Playing, that will help you understand some of the basic concepts. There are a number of “Learn How to Read Music” books that you can buy or get from the library.
Here is what has worked for me: get enough of an understanding of what the written symbols mean and then dig in and wrestle through it. Having a teacher is very helpful also. It can be a slow but very worthwhile endeavor.
As you are learning how to read, it is important to remember why you want to read. It’s the same as with literature. If you had the chance to meet a great writer or musician it would be fantastic to have them tell you a story or play a song. Unfortunately those kind of opportunities are rare so the next best thing is to have them write down what they would have told you if you had meet in person. None of us will meet JS Bach in this world but we can all play and enjoy his music because he wrote it down.
Keep in mind that music - real live, traveling through the air music - is the “thing”. The dots and lines on paper are mere representations. Our role as musicians is to learn how to re-animate those lines and dots and bring the music back to life.
All the best,
John
hi there i just began to play the guitar. unfortunately im terrible im finding it very hard to read music off paper. is there anything you can help me with?
- steph
Steph,
Learning to read music is tricky. Most guitarists play by ear. That means that you learn some basic chords, listen closely to songs you want to play and try to match the chords to the music.
The best way to get started is to find a good teacher or a friend who knows how to play and ask them to help you learn basic chords and a few songs. Once you understand the process you can continue to learn on your own.
Be sure to get a good understanding of rhythm - that’s the pulse of music. When you hear some one start a song by counting 1-2-3-4 that is the beat or tempo that will continue throughout the song.
If you can’t afford a teacher I recommend looking at the lessons section of acousticguitar.com. They have some good music lessons that you can read and hear
Let me know if I can be of further assistance.
John
Comments
One Response to “How to Read Music”
Leave a Reply
Hello i have been tring to teach myself guitar but i cant understand how to read the music can you help me out. you see i want to start my band but i cant get an electric until i learn how to play acoustic. please help me!!!