[Harp-L] How important is it to be able to read music?

[bfrain@xxxxx]

amazing how a little ol' harp can generate large opinions, but that's what forums are for, right?  like everything else, we all like what we like...take the harp as far as you please! lol  you oughta get on a golf or fishing forum!  mercy!

---- Richard Hunter <rhunter377 at xxxxx> wrote: 
> Fred wrote:
> ***
> Richard Hunter (who I greatly admire) wrote:
> ".Wouldn't hurt to learn a little chord and scale theory too.
> I can't imagine this conversation taking place on a forum for sax players."
> 
> I now write:
> Almost all of what Richard says in his post is spot on.  But, a bit of a red
> herring there at the end, Richard.  Sax players don't carry 12 different
> tuned saxes with them, do they?.  If they did, I could easily imagine such a
> discussion on a sax forum.  Personally, I put chord and scale theory well
> above music reading in the priority list.  Nashville numbering takes care a
> lot of that for those of us with transposing instruments.  I thought Michael
> Rubin's comments (who I also greatly admire) were really on the money.
> Don't make me choose between you two, now.
> ***
> 
> Choose what you like man, it's a free country.
> 
> I am not sympathetic to the argument that harp players are a unique breed
> to whom the ordinary laws of music, physics, etc. do not apply.  I am damn
> sure never going to walk into a recording session and tell the assembled
> musicians there that I don't need to read music because, after all, I only
> play harmonica. Granted that I play a transposing instrument; that doesn't
> relieve me of the obligation to know exactly where the note I see printed
> on a score lies on the instrument I'm holding in my hands.
> 
> If you plan to spend your life in France, you'll be a lot better off if you
> learn to speak French. If you plan to spend a good portion of your life in
> music, you'll be a lot better off if you learn that language.
> 
> Like I said before, it all depends on the arena you intend to play in. If
> that's your living room, learn what you need to play in your living room
> and enjoy yourself there.  It's honorable and it's fun.  if your ambitions
> go beyond that, learn what you need to learn in order to move forward.
> 
> Either way, make your choice and take your chances.  If you refuse to learn
> to read, I'm glad to take the gigs that you can't. That's why I up-skilled
> myself in the first place--so I could someday handle more gigs better than
> anyone else.  I'm still working on it.
> 
> Regards, Richard Hunter
> 
> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> "The Lucky One" 21st century rock harmonica project at
> https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/richard-hunter-s-the-lucky-one/x/5259889#/
> Author, "Jazz Harp" (Oak Publications, NYC)
> Latest mp3s and harmonica blog at http://hunterharp.com
> Vids at http://www.youtube.com/user/lightninrick
> Twitter: @lightninrick­­­‪­‪­­­‪‪­­‪­‪­‪­­­­‪­­‪‪‪­‪‪­­­‪­‪­­­­‪‪­­‪­‪­­­­