Sight reading...

[the_nihilist]

...is something I've always wanted to be able to do. After seeing some other threads on here about people struggling with certain things, I decided that instead of wasting my time wishing I could sight read and then not attempting to learn, I'd grit my teeth and teach myself how to sight read and transcribe if it kills me.

So, my questions to you guys are of course:

1) Any general advice that helped you out? Paradigm shifts where things finally "clicked" for you? Suggestions for material to practice?

2) And since this is KVR... any good software for this purpose?




Also... yes, I know I have to practice alot.

[No name]

I'm starting to be able to sight read a little bit, so long as it doesn't get too complex. It's like learning to read any particular language really, understand the different parts that form words, sentences, and then paragraphs. Just practice a lot I suppose. I'm sure someone else has some clever method though. I know i'd like to hear it myself!

[VicDiesel]

Just practice. Practice a lot. I can read like a fiend in treble and bass clef, and I'm almost having to learn from scratch now that I'm playing alto clef (used for violas, and a lot in renaissance music). You just have to develop a sort of visual motor memory. See a note often enough, and your recognition of it will speed up.

So practically, get stacks of sheet music from the library, or try to download stuff, and just play through it.

Victor.

[metrosechual]

I actually learned how to sight read in 4th grade playing the oboe -- and after learning a bit of piano and guitar it translates really easy. What instrument are you learning with?

[VicDiesel]

I actually learned how to sight read in 4th grade playing the oboe -- and after learning a bit of piano and guitar it translates really easy. What instrument are you learning with?

Are you talking to me?

Victor.

[metrosechual]

sorry, i meant to talk to the OP, the person asking the question

[Sascha Franck]

I'm with Vic 100%. Pratice. There's nothing else.
To take it a bit further though: Jump into it. Get into whatever "musical environment" requiring sight reading skills. It'll throw you. Miserably even. High blood pressure, sudden sweat attempts and all. It's the only *real* method though.
As an example of my own experience: I've been studying music. I never really needed sight reading skills since my ears are pretty good. But all of a sudden I've been thrown into an actual deal. Playing musical stuff that was. It was horrible, to say the least. I almost didn't survive. But I somehow managed. Improved my sight reading skills more in 2-3 rehearsals than 4-5 years of studying music at the music university did.

For true starters: You don't mention your main instrument. There's tremendous differences. On keys, you can only play each note once. There's different fingerings though. On reeds, you can (usually) play each note once with only one fingering. So that should be the easiest. On guitars, it's a nightmare, as a guitar player I can tell you. Almost each note is available a number of times (some even 4-5 times) and each can be fingered in a whole load of ways. That's why most guitar players are shitty sight readers.

Howewer, there might be a few good ideas to start with:
- Learn to read rhythms. This, IMO, is fairly easy. Learn the possible subdivisions of a quarter. There's not all that much. Start with 8ths as the smallest value, proceed with 16ths, then go for 8th triplets. That should cover most stuff.
- Learn to sing a few melodies from a sheet. Start with ones in really simple keys, using not much jumps. Then play them on your main instrument. After singing them, playing will be *way* easier (at least in case you're more or less familiar with your instrument already). This, along with being able to read rhythms, has been the single most important thing for me. After a while you will just start to see the connections.
- Start with melodies and variations you're familiar with. Really, even if you know it already, sight reading "Jingle Bells" (or whatever) will give things a new meaning.

Otherwise, some jazz standards are a good thing to start with.

For guitarists, there's a nice book called "melodic rhythms for guitar" which will focus on the most important things.

[the_nihilist]

I'm with Vic 100%. Pratice. There's nothing else.
To take it a bit further though: Jump into it. Get into whatever "musical environment" requiring sight reading skills. It'll throw you. Miserably even. High blood pressure, sudden sweat attempts and all. It's the only *real* method though.
As an example of my own experience: I've been studying music. I never really needed sight reading skills since my ears are pretty good. But all of a sudden I've been thrown into an actual deal. Playing musical stuff that was. It was horrible, to say the least. I almost didn't survive. But I somehow managed. Improved my sight reading skills more in 2-3 rehearsals than 4-5 years of studying music at the music university did.

For true starters: You don't mention your main instrument. There's tremendous differences. On keys, you can only play each note once. There's different fingerings though. On reeds, you can (usually) play each note once with only one fingering. So that should be the easiest. On guitars, it's a nightmare, as a guitar player I can tell you. Almost each note is available a number of times (some even 4-5 times) and each can be fingered in a whole load of ways. That's why most guitar players are shitty sight readers.

Howewer, there might be a few good ideas to start with:
- Learn to read rhythms. This, IMO, is fairly easy. Learn the possible subdivisions of a quarter. There's not all that much. Start with 8ths as the smallest value, proceed with 16ths, then go for 8th triplets. That should cover most stuff.
- Learn to sing a few melodies from a sheet. Start with ones in really simple keys, using not much jumps. Then play them on your main instrument. After singing them, playing will be *way* easier (at least in case you're more or less familiar with your instrument already). This, along with being able to read rhythms, has been the single most important thing for me. After a while you will just start to see the connections.
- Start with melodies and variations you're familiar with. Really, even if you know it already, sight reading "Jingle Bells" (or whatever) will give things a new meaning.

Otherwise, some jazz standards are a good thing to start with.

For guitarists, there's a nice book called "melodic rhythms for guitar" which will focus on the most important things.

I'm playing keyboards mostly. My skills are still pretty awful, though the occasional practice with the metronome and doing some scales means I'm not completely abysmal. It's reading both staff's that's my weak spot. However, not being able to sight read really restricts what I can practice, so I'm not going to get any better unless I do it.

Thanks for the advice.

[guitargeek9]

i always found that while playing one measure, look ahead at the other measure to spot any linear scalar action or to see if any accidentals found their way into the piece.

[Watto]

That's the way I look at sight reading, too - you need to separate your brain into the bit which is playing the current bar, while another part looks ahead to see what's coming.

I get some kind of perverse pleasure from sight-reading - I guess I like that fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants feeling

[VicDiesel]

That's the way I look at sight reading, too - you need to separate your brain into the bit which is playing the current bar, while another part looks ahead to see what's coming.

This is easier with baroque music than with, oh, Stravinsky. They've actually done studies that show that with atonal music even experienced musicians can read just a little bit ahead, while with your average baroque piece you can easily do a whole measure.

Convenient for page turns.

Victor.

[Watto]

That's the way I look at sight reading, too - you need to separate your brain into the bit which is playing the current bar, while another part looks ahead to see what's coming.

This is easier with baroque music than with, oh, Stravinsky.

Agreed

[tee boy]

Eek, sight reading... hmmm, yeah... dont bother!


Ok, here's something that helped me alot. Rather than trying to see the notes, look for the intervals instead. When you can recognise intervals on site, then you only need to know the first note of a passage!

Same with chords. If you know what a tenth looks like, then you only have to know the bass note. If its a open triad, then you'll be able to tell straight away which inverse it is too by the placement of the 5th (something that you can also learn to see). This applies to any chord btw way. Those spanning an octave as pretty easy, especially when in route position.


Oh, something else that might sound really obvious... know the key you're in and have the scales well prepared! You dont want to be fishing around for sharps and flats. Know the key by heart, and then keey an eye out for any accidentals, as they will tend to imply a modulation or tonicization.


Sight reading of fullscore is impossible (for the normal person atleast, if not everyone). The only way to deal with this is to do an open score reduction before hand. Infact, it pays to do that anyway!

BB

[tee boy]

That's the way I look at sight reading, too - you need to separate your brain into the bit which is playing the current bar, while another part looks ahead to see what's coming.

This is easier with baroque music than with, oh, Stravinsky. They've actually done studies that show that with atonal music even experienced musicians can read just a little bit ahead, while with your average baroque piece you can easily do a whole measure.

Convenient for page turns.

Victor.

Ofcourse, Baroque music is mostly diatonic and uses the old standard progressions. C20th atonal music is diabolical in comparison. I cant even memorise that stuff given the score and as much time as I need, let alone sight read it from scratch!

But on of the difficulties of the Baroque stuff is the sometimes complex polyphony. Try sight reading a Bach Fugue in four parts... not easy!

TB

[sp0rk]

I hate to say it - but as a sight reading musician who does it for a living (part time) the only real way to learn is by doing it. Every day. As much as you can.

Knowing all of your scales and key signatures really helps a lot. If you know theory well it helps a ton as well.

I don't use any 'techniques' that I know of (like reading ahead measures or anything like that). It just becomes natural after a while. Practice every day for two weeks straight on sight reading and you'll see what I mean. It's a 'zone' thing - if you don't use it you'll lose it.