Re: [Harp-L] RE: Reading Music

sheltraw@xxxxxxxxxxxx · Sat, 5 Feb 2011 22:31:24 -0800

What if we were all told as children that we could not talk before we
could read text?

> Well, obviously this thread has evoked a lot of opinions and emotions. As
> I'm seeing posts from some who teach music to, presumably, young people, I
> need to put in my two cents.
>
> I took guitar lessons when I was fifteen. The instructor insisted on
> teaching me to read music, to site read as I played (in retrospect, the
> very first thing the schmuck should have done was teach me a three chords
> and then to strum a tune). I didn't enjoy it at all, and after a few
> months asked him why I couldn't just learn how to play without reading
> music. "You know, by ear. Like the Beatles. They don't know how to read
> music."
>
> "Well, the Beatles are geniuses, and they're especially talented. But you
> really need to learn to read music in order to play guitar. Most people
> really do."
>
> What I took from this, at fifteen years old, was that some people had
> natural musical talent, and some (or most) people don't. I was one of the
> ones that didn't, since, according to this instructor (who played a really
> mean guitar, btw, repeatedly impressing the hell out of one fifteen year
> old kid) I needed to learn to read music to play. And all those rock and
> roll stars who didn't read music and had "just picked it up? Well, they
> had that talent. But I couldn't just pick it up myself, so........ Hell, I
> even knew a few guys who played guitar and didn't read music, guess they
> too must have had that natural talent that I didn't have......) So, since
> I figured I didn't have natural musical ability, and since I wasn't
> enjoying these lessons -- and the practice that went w/ them -- one bit, I
> figured: Why bother? Meantime, I loved music, particularly rock and roll
> and the blues, bought my records, went to tons of shows (Grateful Dead,
> anyone?), but never thought to try to play anything myself. After all, I
> wasn't one of those who had been so blessed w/ the talent......
>
> It wasn't until many years later, at the age of 43, looking for a
> substitute for smoking while hanging out on the couch watching the tube, I
> picked up the harmonica and learned how to play it. First I just fooled
> around w/ it, but realized that if I could play along to something in the
> same key as the harp, I could actually make it sound like something. Then
> I bought "How to Play the Country and Blues Harmonica" by  Jon Gindick
> (Thank you, sir!) and the rest is..... yeah, history.
>
> I know there are lots of better harp players out there (can't help but
> wonder how I'd sound if I'd been playing 30 years or more like so
> many....) but I can hold my own since I am somewhat in demand as a sideman
> here in the IE, often asked to sit-in w/ lots of extremely talented folks
> (and occasionally they even let me sing!), and sometimes I even get paid
> for playing the thing. I play completely by ear, usually I couldn't even
> tell you what holes I'm playing on the harp (well, guess I could, but I'd
> have to stop to think about it.....), let alone what the notes are. I'm
> still not sure what a scale is, though I think that's what I'm playing a
> lot of. It gave me a headache when I tried to take a music theory class at
> the community college where I teach (no I don't teach music, ha ha),
> though I do know some of what I presume to be theory (there are twelve
> major keys; count up four keys to get to the 2nd position; four more for
> 3rd position; four more for 4th position- the relative major, i.e.,
> straight harp for the minor key........) Eventually got someone to explain
> what 1-4-5 means (for a long time I used to just nod and say "okay" when
> onstage at shows and jams they would say to me stuff like "it starts on
> the one" or "on the five", actually wasn't that much of a handicap, I'd
> just always "come in".....). Couple of years after learning harp, I did
> manage to learn a little guitar, at least some first position chords.
> Don't play it very well, but I've figured out a hundred tunes or so on it.
> (There's that theory thing again, at least whereby understanding harp made
> figuring out tunes on guitar much easier, e.g.: Since D is the cross from
> A, and A is the cross from E.... if you're playing in the key of A, the
> root chords are A-D-E! And isn't that the 1-4-5?).
>
> The point of all this: There are a lot of kids out there who are totally
> put off by learning to read music, but are told that if they ever want to
> play an instrument, reading music is the very first step. So they either
> quit right there (maybe they figure they don't have the natural
> talent......) or they do indeed learn to read music, but at some point
> they quit and never go back (it can be so tedious.....). Think of all
> those little girls out there who take piano lessons, learn to site read,
> but never ever develop an ear. And most of them quit playing as soon as
> Mom says "okay, now you can quit if you want" (my cousin's three daughters
> can all be so described). Must be millions of 'em!
>
> So, for all you musicians who can read notation and know your theory and
> all that: Good for you! I have to say I am indeed envious, because I never
> will and, yes, it may indeed define the ceiling on my progress as a harp
> player. But if you're teaching someone to play, don't presume they have to
> learn formally. Get them to actually play something on the instrument
> first. Otherwise, you just might be taking all of the fun out of it.
> Permanently!
>
>
>
> Date: Fri, 4 Feb 2011 17:09:35 -0500 (EST)
> From: The Iceman <icemanle@xxxxxxx>
> Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Reading Music
> To: peloquinharp@xxxxxxxxxxx, harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx
> Message-ID: <8CD92CF5786D449-1AC4-1E140@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
>
> Interesting. As a teacher constantly working with students w/no knowledge
> of music on harmonica, I was fascinated by the idea that you don't need
> notation to teach theory, as I just couldn't wrap my head around this, as
> I will use notation (simplified) with these students. Any new easy way to
> teach theory will help me in my evolution as a teacher. More complete
> approaches to teaching, say, harmonies and voicings without using notation
> would be welcome to me and my students.
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Michael Peloquin <peloquinharp@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> To: Harp -l <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Fri, Feb 4, 2011 11:49 am
> Subject: RE: [Harp-L] Reading Music
>
>
>
> Michael Rubin posted:
>> <<I also do not think you need to read to understand and use theory.>>
>
> Larry E. posted:
>> am curious.how may this be accomplished?
>
> I am with Mr. Rubin on this. I could "read" music at a 1st grade level for
> over
> 10 years but understood a fair amount of theory (street
> educated/functional
> type.)
> Theory is used by me in conjunction with my ear (theory trained ear) to
> improvise and "play by ear."  It was only after deciding to learn to
> "read"
> music and actually doing it constantly in ensemble situations where it was
> necessary, that I would actually come to call myself a reader. I could
> imagine
> that theory for some is totally tied to amental picture of staff notation
> but my
> mental picture is of note layout on the instrument that I am playing.
> Reading is a skill for many of us that is independent of playing and only
> a
> tool. Real music comes from within IMO, everything plays and sounds better
> after
> the charts are gone  if you ask me- and I love to write and have people
> play my
> arrangements! Blind people tend to make some great music.
>
>
> Michael Peloquin
> http://www.usaharmonicas.com
> <https://owa.sbccd.cc.ca.us/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.usaharmonicas.com>
>
> http://harpsax.com
> <https://owa.sbccd.cc.ca.us/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://harpsax.com>
>
> http://myspace.com/peloquinharpsax
> <https://owa.sbccd.cc.ca.us/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://myspace.com/peloquinharpsax>
>
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