Learning to read... again...

[CamdenRob]

Determined to have a proper go at it this time after a few half-arsed attempts in the past.

I know where the notes are on the stave / fretboard, understand key sigs, time sigs and note / rest values etc. but my sight reading skills are non existent and it's something I really would like to be able to do so I've started my way thorugh this;



First couple of chapters down and not finding it too difficult to sight read through the exercises although I expect it gets much harder!

Must stick with it and actually learn this time...

Edited July 6, 2015 by CamdenRob

[discreet]

Stuart Clayton? Isn't he brother of Adam?
If so, there'll be a chapter on how to play eighths on one note for an hour. Mee-oww!!

Edit: Well done though, I read very well throughout my school days and let it slide*, which is unforgivable.

* See [i]glissando[/i].

Edited July 6, 2015 by discreet

[Bilbo]

You know how it works, now all you have to do is do it. Lots. The more you do it, the better your reading will get. Do some every day. Half hour or so of reading will do wonders. And you will learn the fretboard backwards whilst you do it.

[CamdenRob]

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1436172113' post='2815467']
You know how it works, now all you have to do is do it. Lots. The more you do it, the better your reading will get. Do some every day. Half hour or so of reading will do wonders. And you will learn the fretboard backwards whilst you do it.
[/quote]

You're right of course, the key is practice... need to commit it to memory and get faster so I can look ahead a bar or so for any pitfalls.

[chris_b]

I could read muisc when I left school. Self taught, the school was no help at all.

I even did a couple of sessions reading the dots, in the early days, but all that disappeared over the years through lack of use.

[enricogaletta]

One of the common issue on bass players starts reading is the gradualness.
Most of them pretend to learn the basics and than skip to the most hard samples, super wrong in my opinion but, is also true that there are several books for reading that don't concern about gradualness.
Reading is probably one of the things on bass playing where gradualness and constance are crucial, if you do it the right way, you're not only improve your reading but also your time skills.
Let me explain using skiing as example, if you learn how to manage simple movements on easy blue slopes, than you have to keep improve all the technique gradually [u]as the same[/u] facing different type of inclines on different slopes, and you really need time to acquire it. Than when you're ready not only with the technique but also with the "incline view" you're ready to go to the hard black ones.
Coming back to reading sometimes, players got some good skills on the sight reading (notes position on the staff) but not as well on the rhythm reading or viceversa, or they have both good basic skills but, when they're facing hard music charts, they're just get stuck.
Is also true that the speed on how you read depends in most of the case from your music scenario.
Anyway to get a good reading level you have at least work on both the aspects of modern reading, sight and rhythm and there are only two options for it, get a good teacher or, learning by your self using the right books with[u] gradualness and constance[/u].
In my opinion I found extremely good these two books:

- MODERN READING TEXT 4/4 for rhythm reading [url="http://www.bassbooks.com/shopping/shopexd.asp?id=297&bc=no"]http://www.bassbooks...sp?id=297&bc=no[/url]
- SIGHT READING FOR THE BASS for sight reading [url="http://www.bassbooks.com/shopping/shopexd.asp?id=179"]http://www.bassbooks...pexd.asp?id=179[/url]

If you do both the book together, following all the chapters without skipping, than in few months you'll finish it and you'll be ready for the next step, music charts.
Reading needs quality than quantity, even 10 minutes every day, will be better that 2 hours once at week.
Lat but not least, an other amazing practising for reading is facing slap music charts (without tabs off course), you can't imagine how good makes your skills.
If you need any further help just let me know.
Good luck.
Cheers. Enrico

[Grangur]

Feel free to use any of the pieces here:

http://basschat.co.uk/topic/215336-learning-to-read-the-dots-sheet-music-to-learn-with/page__fromsearch__1

I got these together as pieces that allow you to pay a tune that will tell you if you're getting it right, because you recognise it.

[TKenrick]

[quote name='enricogaletta' timestamp='1436202145' post='2815936']
Anyway to get a good reading level you have at least work on both the aspects of modern reading, sight and rhythm and there are only two options for it, get a good teacher or, learning by your self using the right books with[u] gradualness and constance[/u].
In my opinion I found extremely good these two books:

- MODERN READING TEXT 4/4 for rhythm reading [url="http://www.bassbooks.com/shopping/shopexd.asp?id=297&bc=no"]http://www.bassbooks...sp?id=297&bc=no[/url]
- SIGHT READING FOR THE BASS for sight reading [url="http://www.bassbooks.com/shopping/shopexd.asp?id=179"]http://www.bassbooks...pexd.asp?id=179[/url]

[/quote]

+1 for Louis Bellson's book, worked through it when I was at college and it did wonders for my rhythm reading (more on why this book is great [url="https://tomkenrick.wordpress.com/2014/11/17/unorthodox-instructionals-part-3-getting-even-with-drummers/"]here[/url]).

For pitch reading I'm a big fan of cello music as it tends to be more interesting than anything written for the electric (or upright) bass, something like the [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dotzauer-Studies-Cello-Nos-1-34/dp/B007HWJIIO/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1436221299&sr=8-3&keywords=dotzauer+cello"]Dotzauer etudes[/url] is a good place to start, as are the Bach cello suites.

Reading is such a useful skill which so many players get frustrated with and give up on - the time and effort that you're investing will pay huge dividends in all areas of your musicianship, so fair play for taking the plunge!

[NoirBass]

I would agree with all the above. I'd like to add that Transcription has been a massive help to me and my ability to sight read. It allows you to really pick apart the process and builds up your repertoire. Win win.

Edited July 7, 2015 by NoirBass

[louisthebass]

[quote name='CamdenRob' timestamp='1436169337' post='2815440']
Determined to have a proper go at it this time after a few half-arsed attempts in the past.

I know where the notes are on the stave / fretboard, understand key sigs, time sigs and note / rest values etc. but my sight reading skills are non existent and it's something I really would like to be able to do so I've started my way thorugh this;



First couple of chapters down and not finding it too difficult to sight read through the exercises although I expect it gets much harder!

Must stick with it and actually learn this time...
[/quote]

You've chosen a good book to start with! It's a very good introduction to reading, well laid out and user friendly. I'm part way through the Intermediate Book, but have hit a brick wall with the second chapter on semiquavers (16th notes).

30 mins a day should see you alright .

[CamdenRob]

Getting on OK with this, trying to have at least some practice every day. Chapter 3 introduced several more notes so i'm running over and over it until I have it fluent before moving on. I also noticed that these exercises are supposed to be played at 65bpm... When I got the metronome out I realised that I've been reading them at least twice that speed so I must be doing something right...

One point. My main bass is a six string but I started learning to read using (1st position?) the lower frets and open strings. I tend not to do this when I'm playing / improvising as I find using open strings means I'm using different fingering and it can throw my scale shapes out, so now I'm wondering whether to start again using the more familiar pattern of using the 5th fret of the B string as my low E... good idea? I suspect the answer is going to be to practice reading in both positions...

Edited July 8, 2015 by CamdenRob

[TKenrick]

[quote name='CamdenRob' timestamp='1436336656' post='2817099']
I tend not to do this when I'm playing / improvising as I find using open strings means I'm using different fingering and it can throw my scale shapes out, so now I'm wondering whether to start again using the more familiar pattern of using the 5th fret of the B string as my low E... good idea? I suspect the answer is going to be to practice reading in both positions...
[/quote]

Exactly. If you're playing a 5 or 6 (or more...) string bass then it's your responsibility to learn the 'extra' parts of the fretboard inside out, so it's well worth working through the exercises in every possible position.

[JapanAxe]

Try to blag your way into a rehearsal band, i.e. a dance band working from written parts. The more you do, the better you get.

[CamdenRob]

Making some progress having been going over and over the exercises in the book.

I picked up a couple of cello books at the weekend to have a go at those.

[Bilbo]

Couple of things; scale shapes have their uses but they are also a bit of a bear trap. If you put together a scale shaope for a mixolydian scale, for instance, everytime you play a line over a dom7 chord, you can find yourself defining yor options using that shape. OK when you are starting out but you can find yourself unconsiously boxed in if you are not careful.

As for reading; I just got a seven string bass and am having to relearn reading not in the sense that the ntoes are in a different place on the stave but in that they are in a different set of places on the bass neck. The main issue is my right hand. Firstly, I am playing the seven string with a pick which changes things a little in terms of cross-string work and, secondly, because the EAD and G strings are now squeezed in between three others!! All ok for simple scale orientated reading but arpeggios and jumps greataer than a sixth are catching me out again and again.

[CamdenRob]

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1439288949' post='2841512']
...scale shapes have their uses but they are also a bit of a bear trap. If you put together a scale shaope for a mixolydian scale, for instance, everytime you play a line over a dom7 chord, you can find yourself defining yor options using that shape. OK when you are starting out but you can find yourself unconsiously boxed in if you are not careful.
[/quote]

I've only recently become aware of this as a limiting influence on my playing... I've been trying to mitigate it by thinking what it is I want to acheive with a specific bassline and attempting to create that from the notes I have available, rather than just using my memorised shapes until I come up with something that sounds good.... it's a slow process but I feel it's important for me to understand what it is I'm trying to say with my compositions if I am to progress any further with my playing.

I am concerned I've become a bit of a "painting by numbers" player...

Edited August 11, 2015 by CamdenRob

[gapiro]

[quote name='CamdenRob' timestamp='1436336656' post='2817099']
Getting on OK with this, trying to have at least some practice every day. Chapter 3 introduced several more notes so i'm running over and over it until I have it fluent before moving on. I also noticed that these exercises are supposed to be played at 65bpm... When I got the metronome out I realised that I've been reading them at least twice that speed so I must be doing something right...

[/quote]

Playing slower is actually harrder in some circumstances - Consider playing each one at say, 40/ 65 / 90

[jakenewmanbass]

The most overlooked element in the (absolutely) correct 'do it' mantra is doing it in context too.
So get together with other players and read stuff so there is a collective energy keeping you moving forward...
count in and off you go.

[krispn]

I'm thinking of starting to actually learn music theory stuff as I'm a bit hopeless at it. About 10 yrs ago I started writing out the parts of songs my band wrote while doing the 1 hour bus journey to visit family with the view to giving the written parts to a friend who could read... i got the parts all written but never gave them to my friend to play.

I've thought if I dedicate the time spent looking at basses and amps on BC into actually learning some music theory I'd be a better player in about 3 weeks Now the clocks have changed music theory and learning how to swim properly are top of my to do lists! This book is getting bought!

Alo is the GCSE syllabus book any good?

Edited October 25, 2015 by krispn

[Bilbo]

ANYTHING is good. Just do it and keep doing it. Don't stick to one piece until you get it right, jump around different pieces so you avoid learning them and not READING them. Anything. Two bars, two pages, two books - keep going!!

[krispn]

I'm liking the idea of learning cello pieces! Phone apps downloaded, books will be checked out onWed after my cheeky half day as I'm on a course from work and currently working on cycle of 5th's stuff. It's all making sonic sense!