[Harp-L] values of transcription- a learning accerlerator

[randy singer <randy@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Here are my thoughts about transcription

Why transcribe?

Musicians have forever been transcribing and listening to other 
musicians in order
to learn. Listening and transcribing are absolutely the greatest way to 
learn a
tradition that is, in fact, oral by nature.

No book in the world can describe how
something sounds! You are training your ear, your instrumental skills, 
note
writing, phrasing etc.

This is the greatest way to understand what the big guys are
doing (they've all been doing exactly the same thing).

Don't just transcribe the notes, play along and try to copy the exact 
feeling of the
musicians and the things they are playing.

 How to transcribe?

Begin by playing along with the tune. You will learn in small loops 
(4-8 note sections).

Then, do the following--

a) sing the melody/lick perfectly (include bending, vibrato and 
dynamics in your voice).

b) listen and learn (if you do not have the sheet music) and recording 
it to a mindisc and Akai riffomatic for learning.

b) Reading it if you have the sheet music or writing it down is 
extremely helpful if you do not have the sheet music.

 Start transcribing at full speed, slow down the speed only when it's 
too fast for your
ear to comprehend or when your instrumental technique isn't up to it. 
Use the Akai riff-0-matic to slow it down. Store your solos, loops and 
lessons on a mindisc player so you can refresh your memory from time to 
time..

You have to OWN the solo or lick. You will know you own it when you do 
the following

a) you can play it perfectly (or almost perfectly) 5 or more times in a 
row.

b) you can play the solo or lick in several keys. This is optional, but 
one truly will OWN this lick when you do this, most certainly. You will 
forever have the rhythmic and melodic concept to use in many songs.

Once you learn the melody or solo measure by measure (loops), then play 
all the loops together (play the entire solo or melody from beginning 
to end).

As you go along, write it down if you can. . If your note writing skill 
is bad, try your best.
anyway! This way you improve this skill, too. After a while, when 
you've forgotten what you
learned, it's very easy to remember it with the help of the written 
score. or you can listen to the mindisc..

How exact should I be?

That depends.

The more exact you play, the better musician you will be.

Switch between transcribing and practicing. Often, a couple of notes or 
phrases is
enough to give you a lot of new ideas to work on.

The benefits of transcribing work miracles regardless if one wants to 
become a jazz musician or if one want to play classical music.

Learning solos (or melodies) is the quickest way to achieve 
musicianship. Walking in the footsteps of the musical greats is this 
method. Follow and learn.

Happy transcribing!

randy singer
www.randysinger.com

Rolf Nilsson / Roni Music
http://www.ronimusic.com