O/T: My Confession - I can't read music and need your help!

[Aljn]

Hi everyone,

I've been a Highland Piper for over 15 years now, I've played whistles for a few years, and have been playing Uilleann pipes since earlier this year.

Skipping what is a rather long and boring back story, I'm here to ask for your help.

Apart from knowing the basic positions of the notes when I really need to look up sheet music, I can't really read or understand it. Almost everything I've ever learned is by ear or imitation.

I'm quite embarrassed by this and I honestly think I'm at the point now where it's drastically hampering my progress in learning new tunes for any instrument.

So, I'm going to cut to the chase here: I'm not putting this up as sob story for you to make me feel better about myself, I want to pick your collective brains to help me.

If any of you know of a great guide/video/book/whatever which explains how to read and interpret music in a straight-forward and easy to understand way, I would much appreciate your sharing it with me. I don't mind if it's piping specific, as HJ Clarke does a good job in her book (which I own) of explaining the different meanings of the piping specific techniques and how they're written.

I've read the typical texts that come with tutors and the generic music books which explain it all, but I just don't get it. There is just so much that they don't seem to explain, whilst they go into painful levels of detail on other things that just confuse the issue when learning - particularly when it comes to rythm and trying to get it right in my head.

Thanks in advance for your help and understanding!

-Aljn.

[Calum]

Harrum. I would say your best course is to find a teacher and ask for a half-dozen lessons on music theory. Some one-on-one instruction would probably unlock quite a few doors for you.

[joconnor58]

You might consider trying a beginners Piano book. There won't be a lot of time spent on conveying technique, as any chimp can push on a piano key. And the music reading portions of the book will likely be very straightforward and have a distinct basis in music theory rather than being instrument specific. Just be on the lookout for the difference between treble clef and bass clef and completely ignore the bass clef stuff.

One-on-one instruction will be the fastest path and can help fill in those specific gaps you feel are being left open in the Clarke tutor. In a one-on-one setting you can ask any question and get your answer.

Where are you located, there may be a Chiffer nearby. Might even be one of the less surly ones.

[Cathy Wilde]

This is NOT a personal slam; it's just an unfortunate name.

But there's some pretty good basic information here ...

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/h ... 07233.html
http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/m ... sheet.html

As far as learning to read, I suggest taking a tune you know and finding the sheet music for it. Then, very slowly, start playing the tune while looking at the sheet music. It takes time, but eventually your brain starts connecting the dots and you find yourself actually reading along. It's very cool!

P.S. I'll check when I get home and report back, but I think the funny little books called "Whistle and Sing" have wonderful basic music-theory sections. http://www.musicroom.com/se/id_no/095317/details.html

If you have one of those around, take a look. They're tiny gems!

[an seanduine]

First I must tell you I envy your abilities to learn by ear and mimicry. If found myself clearly on the other side of the musical coin when I first encountered traditional music. I was introduced to the world of sight reading at an early age and even more confoundingly participated in sight reading contests for a number of years. This was no help at all in the world of ITM. In fact, this was a ball and chain I struggled to break free from.
However, it does have its uses. . .so with that thought in mind along the lines of Cathy's suggestion I would point you to something like Sibelius Scorch or some other interactive software that highlights the notes as you hear the music played back. Essentially this what I am doing when I sight read without software, but the training is there.
It was a struggle to train my aural skills, just as it may be a struggle for you to train your visual skills. You have my sympathies and encouragement.

Bob

[MTGuru]

First, I like the idea of a teacher best. As you're an experienced musician, a couple of music reading lessons would put you right. I've taught the basics of notation in as little as an hour or so, with good results.

Second, Googling "how to read music" turns up a number of online tutorials. Pick a few and work through them. It's not hard at all! Pitch is up and down, time is different shaped notes from left to right. The rest is just details.

Third, the book I sometimes suggest is this one: http://www.edly.com/mtfpp.html

It's far more than reading, but theory can open up a world of understanding. And this book seems especially well-organized and well-written.

[Aljn]

Thanks everyone for your kind words and your suggestions.

I think I'll definitely be taking the advice here and get back to basics - once I'm home from my Christmas holiday, I'll find a local music teacher and pray they'll go easy on me

Cheers again! I'll let you all know how it goes

-Alan.

[An Draighean]

... I think the funny little books called "Whistle and Sing" have wonderful basic music-theory sections. http://www.musicroom.com/se/id_no/095317/details.html

If you have one of those around, take a look. They're tiny gems!

Thanks Cathy, it's great to know these are still in print, and that there's more than one! I bought one (the first volume now?) in 1975 or 76 when I was first learning to play the whistle. It is full of good arrangements of great tunes, most of the airs with the words in Irish or English. Now I'm going back to learn many of the tunes on the pipes (working on The Kid On the Mountain currently). It has always been one of my favorite music books ever. Fortunately, the binding on mine is very sturdy and it is still in one piece after all these years, but it is nice to know that you can still buy them; thanks for posting!

[otsaku]

Aljn when learning to play the guitar at age 20 I started by learning a song I knew, liked and could sing.

Every instrument I've attempted to learn since I've stuck with songs I could sing. It wasn't until 5 or 6 years ago when I started playing the whistle that I began to read music. I can't tell a crotchet from a quaver but by playing simple songs that I can sing, I've slowly got a feel for what music notation means.

Having said that I'm still in awe of people who can look at new pieces of sheet music and get the song right from the start.

[Cathy Wilde]

While I may be woefully deficient in my playing, I'm one of those people who can read a page of sheet music like most folks read a newspaper. Sight-reading is de rigueur in most band, orchestra or music-school auditions, and I can tell you that it's just practice. No talent involved; it's simply putting in your "10,000 hours." And it's not that hard to practice with a sheet of music in front of you -- you can either look at it or not, but it's interesting how your eyes, ears, and brain eventually start working together when you do.

An Draighean, I agree the settings in the Whistle and Sing books are terrific. The songs are really good too, and I like the "slightly off the beaten path" options -- I think the author has really good taste! And the second book's as good as the first.

[Gabriel]

Getting a few lessons from a music teacher plus a theory book is probably the way to go.

However - I don't think it is a shame not being able to read music. I once knew how to do it - sort of. I was young and took piano lessons froms the local church organist. In fact I only "read" the music (i.e. brachiating through the sheet dot by dot) until I was able to play the piece by ear. I hated reading music. I had to do a few sheets of music reading practise every lesson and felt it didn't do anything for my playing. I eventually quit the piano lessons and stopped playing the piano at all because I hated playing music from sheets, and wasn't allowed to play by ear. It took me a few years to get into playing music again, on the whistle, and by ear only. I only recently got into reading music again as teaching flute and whistle workshops required me to teach what the non-by-ear players have on the sheet I handed them out...it is a nice ability to have, but you don't have to be able to do it to play music. And if you're good at playing by ear and mimicking you should be happy, since that is a skill the very most people don't have, or don't allow themselves to have, since one can only play music by reading the dots, right?

[Calum]

Music-reading is a skill like any other in music. Whether or not you need it is up to you and the music you play, but speaking as the guy who is usually the only GHB player in the room who can sightread at speed and talk theory with the "sittin' doon band", it's handy when you do need it!

[An Draighean]

While I may be woefully deficient in my playing, I'm one of those people who can read a page of sheet music like most folks read a newspaper. Sight-reading is de rigueur in most band, orchestra or music-school auditions, and I can tell you that it's just practice. No talent involved; it's simply putting in your "10,000 hours."

Me too. I never really considered my 10,000 hours before, but I've been reading music for 45 years at least on a variety of instruments and I would have a hard time explaining how to do it, it's just sub-conscious now. In some ways it's a hindrance to learning the pipes though - I used to play page after page of O'Neill's just to practice my chanter fingering, until I realized that I wasn't learning any tunes. So now I just play a few favorites at a time over and over until I can hear them in my head and I remember them.

An Draighean, I agree the settings in the Whistle and Sing books are terrific. The songs are really good too, and I like the "slightly off the beaten path" options -- I think the author has really good taste! And the second book's as good as the first.

Good to know, as I just ordered the second book off of Amazon.com! Thanks Cathy.

I like the good mix of airs and songs along with dance music, and that the author frequently explains something about the background, origins, or lyrics of many of the tunes and airs.

[Cathy Wilde]

I totally agree it doesn't have to be "either/or." I listen to this music almost nonstop, and I listen hard. But when I come across a new tune, especially a tune I don't have a recording for, it's nice to be able to get a basic version into my ear BY playing the notes. In the best of all worlds I get to both listen and play, and this approach seems to help me get to a working version of a tune pretty quickly because it goes into my fingers as it goes into my ear.

Once the tune sticks in my head, usually after a half-hour or so playing it with the music over 2-3 days -- I can sing it by then -- I spend a lot more time with the tune, try variations, etc. I keep singing it in my head, and I stay on the lookout for more recordings/settings of it. The Internet is so great for that!

At the end of the day, notation definitely helps me get there faster as far as the basic outline of the tune. From there it's just playing it a lot.

What's really freaky is when you're playing along and suddenly you see the dots in your head, even if you learned a tune pretty much completely by ear. That happened to me last night in a session, and FWIW, it was handy mental backup because the room was so loud I could hardly hear myself.

Enjoy that book, An Draighean!