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

[jon kip]

Hey, Vern...nice to "hear" from you....
I'll answer in the body of the note....
> On Dec 28, 2016, at 1:03 PM, Vern <jevern at xxxxx> wrote:
> 
> Here are a couple of questions about reading.
> 
> I can name all of the notes on the scale within the range of a C chromatic and identify the hole-blow/draw-button to play them.  However my reading isn’t fluent with unfamiliar material and I miss an occasional “black-key” note.  My reading in C is much better than in other keys.  
> 
Naming the notes: After you really learn to read, the step of "naming" the notes is skipped, much like when you're driving, your actions are automatic, and not  thought  about at all. (When you read actual words, you don't think about the words themselves very much, if at all)

Knowing the "fingering" of the notes....you'll skip any thinking about hole number, blow or draw.....you want to play a G, so you Play a G. You don't play a "hole three blow"....that's a dead end street. Tommy says that we have a pallet of notes, and we pick and choose. Any thoughts of hole numbers or air direction need to be skipped ASAP, filed in the brain to be used automatically...

Your eyes see a written note, and your brain and body play that note. No thought will be needed, sooner or later.

> Q. Are playing scales in various keys a worthwhile use of practice time.?
All music is made up of intervals (yes, Joe Leone, even one note samba) , so having as many potential combinations of notes already at your fingertips, so to speak, is a good idea. And scales are as good a place to start as any.

The most difficult things I've had to play were things that were "ALMOST" chromatic scales, or "ALMOST" common arpeggios. 


> Q. Is it better to just practice on a variety of unfamiliar pieces in various keys?

Depends upon your personal goals. When I've learned a tune in all keys, it's been daunting, but at the end of the process, I'm very glad to have done the work, and find that I have more phrases available in my  box of stolen jazz licks.... But YOUR GOALS are what's important, and it's important to balance your goals with your available time, while still , if you want, pushing yourself to do more.
> 
> Back when I was an amateur radio “Ham”, I knew that the fluent readers of morse code were typing a word or two behind the code that was sounding.
> 
> Q. is it true that fluent readers are playing a measure or two behind what they are reading?

It is true. We like to know what's coming up so as to not embarrass ourselves more than necessary.

> Q. I have been attempting to concentrate on the first note of the next measure.  Is this a reasonable approach to reading ahead?

Sure, it's really "whatever's comfortable" and then a slight push into The Uncomfortable turns the "previously uncomfortable" into the "fully comfortable, what's next?" mode.

> 
> Listening to you play, I have concluded that because your reading is automatic, your attention can be directed to interpretation, phrasing, and tone that you do so well.

I'd hope so....I try , anyway....

And, in spite of what I wrote at the top , being able to name the note one is playing, is a good thing..and comes in handy. AND , on chromatic harmonica, for me, that part took a long long time, just as being able to pick up the instrument and correctly play whatever note I want to play without looking at the numbers on the machine.....So it's not that we DON"T want to KNOW the names of the notes as we play, but we don't want to think about it while we play....

for more confusion , ask another question....


> 
> Vern
> 
> 
> 
>> On Dec 28, 2016, at 12:08 PM, jon kip <jon at xxxxx> wrote:
>> 
>> I'm wondering if ANY person here (or there) has decided to learn to read music based on things discussed here, and if they've been successful at that venture. (and if no success was found, what the VERY last thing you did to learn to read music was).
>> 
>> It's not my major source of Wonderment, but it's one small one that comes to mind  as I read this edition of Harp_L, avoiding melodic minor arpeggios in The Silly Keys.
>> 
>> My major source of Wonderment is how I allow myself to put off practicing while pondering my wonderment.
>> 
>> I'll stop now.
>> 
>> And, lest I fail to repeat myself, as we Elderly Folks forget to not do at times.....here's a link, once again, to my site where I ask "are you good enough to not learn to read music?" (Answer:some are, some aren't)
>> 
>> http://jonkip.com/reading.html
>> 
>> And if you have any questions about learning to read....just send me an email....I made my living for 45 years by reading music and might have some tips for someone willing to put in the time to learn The Reading of Notes, and I probably know stuff.
>> 
> 
> 

jon kip
jon at xxxxx