Beating A Dead Horse

I know nobody cares or wants to hear my tale, but here goes anyway.

A while ago I played two or three Christmas tunes using REAL music, and I played waaaaay better than I had earlier. I still, after all this time, don't understand why we use those tabs. The only advantage I can see is that tabs tell one where to put his fingers. But it seems to me that one would wanna play how he wants to play and figger stuff out for him/her self.

Well, that's it--off the ol' gray chest. Eat, drink and have a good, good Chrismas! ld:

Becoz you're an old timer, thats why

Hi DUD,

What do you mean by "real" music? Piano sheets with just notes? I know when I play uke with my kid's piano sheets, I have a hard time figuring out all the chords.

Does it include chord names on the top? I thought you mainly play chords so you wouldn't really need tabs. So can you figure out the chords for all the songs if they just have the melody?

Whatever makes you happy, it's all good but I definitely like to know the chord names. Secondly, the piano has several octaves so I like it when they have tabs for ukes so I can play melody in it's range.

What I don't like is when certain songs are originally arranged in a certain key and they change it to easier keys for ukes. You learn a song and then when you play with other musicians, you're asking yourself how to play that chord! hahaha

Down Up Dick said:

I know nobody cares or wants to hear my tale, but here goes anyway.

A while ago I played two or three Christmas tunes using REAL music, and I played waaaaay better than I had earlier. I still, after all this time, don't understand why we use those tabs. The only advantage I can see is that tabs tell one where to put his fingers. But it seems to me that one would wanna play how he wants to play and figger stuff out for him/her self.

Well, that's it--off the ol' gray chest. Eat, drink and have a good, good Chrismas! ld:

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There is one important thing that you are not taking into account when you talk about the "best way" to learn. That is that everyone learns in different ways. I express that opinion with the benefit of a higher education in Education and a career of 40 years in the field. One of the greatest challenges that a good teacher has is discovering what is the 'best way' for each student. If you do find out and open doors for all your students, the rewards are fantastic.

Down Up Dick said:

... I still, after all this time, don't understand why we use those tabs. The only advantage I can see is that tabs tell one where to put his fingers...

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It means I can sight-read without having to know exactly where each note is on the fretboard. Call me lazy, but I don't yet know where they all are. Later I can go back and work out better fingerings but it's a quick way to learn a tune.

Down Up Dick said:

I still, after all this time, don't understand why we use those tabs.

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It's simple: because some of us don't read standard notation (yet).

I don't really use tab other than a reference point, even after years of guitar. But I played piano and read music when I was a kid, so maybe I'm looking for something that isn't there.

Except for stretch and unusual semi-open shapes, the basic melody is in the chords.

I will say that for more difficult arrangements, tab & chords with YouTube is the ultimate for me.

John

Both tabs and standard notation is my favorite. That way it's all there, and, as a plus, I can use the notation to play my other instruments. If there's words too, I'm all set. I wish all sheet music was available that way.

And that's what I look for when I'm shopping books. I just bought a banjo book like that. ld:

I use tabs, I originally wanted to read notation but didn't know the fret board, all I could find was music with lyrics and chords... So I learned chords, The basic music notation books didn't really strike my fancy and many of the tunes I wanted to play could only be found in tab. So I learned it... I was told people didn't even read notation for string instruments... So I learned to read tab.. then recently music notation became more available at least to me... and I was not willing to learn to read yet another style... I began learning to play songs with only chords and started to be able to figure out my own melody... and now have no desire to learn notation anymore. I wish I would have at first... but now I don't think I need it... maybe someday I will need it. (I doubt it)

I started on guitar when I was a kid and played by ear, and that's been my primary approach since then. I can read notation but it's a slow, painful process, and I've never found the patience to learn tab. Learning notation (actually music theory) helped me find my way around chords, but I still play by ear almost entirely. It's hard to progress that way, but since I play for fun it's not a big deal.

I can't read music and have always had a hard time doing so, but tabs make total sense to me and has allowed me to play things I wouldn't even tackle without it. It's helped me tremendously now playing bass uke. Here's a tab sheet I made of "Fly Me to the Moon" for our next gig on Tuesday, Dec. 22.

When I first started ukulele, I looked at tabs. There were many songs that you could play with tabs, when you did searches for music. I then picked up a book and learned notation and where the notes on the ukulele are. Learning how to make movable chord shapes has taught me a lot of the notes on the fretboard. I still look at tabs or notation.

But, I recently took up classical guitar and jazz guitar. With the classical guitar, it's only music notation. The jazz guitar is same. One thing I've noticed is that I've progressed much faster on the guitar by reading notation than the ukulele with tabs and notation. I do not use any tabs with guitar. Guitar may be easier to play because I played the ukulele first. I'm not sure about it. My instinct tells me it's the sight reading and learning the guitar fretboard that is working. I know that I can think about how to play something and see where my hands may be better placed.

I find that it's easier to sight read and play. So you train yourself when seeing a note, you play here or another place. I'm surprised that it's not so bad reading notation and playing. I've been sight reading for four months on guitar . It was not an overnight thing but something that I worked on everyday. I'm still learning and expect it will be another 6 months before it becomes comfortable. I like playing songs and reading notation will allow me to play a lot of songs. If I put the time in now, I know it'll will pay off.

It can be accomplished if you do not pressure yourself and expect to be reading and playing instantly. It takes time to develop the skill. I have a long ways to go. It's nice picking up a piece of music and understanding it a little bit.

*I'm trying to remedy my reading on the ukulele by playing songs out of the The Real Book Sixth Edition http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0634060384?tag=wwwmorgankels-20 It's my reading practice for learning melodies that I can play on the ukulele. Then I can always explore some ways to approach the melody with chords listed already in the book. I try to make it fun and you should too. After all most of us play the ukulele for fun and I think the secret is making the learning fun so that you do not mind doing it.

The only advantage I can see is that tabs tell one where to put his fingers.

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... got it in one

For "straight melody", probably effectively ignoring the re-entrant string, I'm for conventional notation every time. I use the same sheets of music with a selection of fretted stringed instruments and woodwind, but for some of that more fanciful stuff, campanella-style or lute music (or even lute music campanella style) and clawhammer I do find the tab, both for ukulele and 5-string banjo, quite useful

Playing music came before notation, it's a learning tool.. everyones at different levels, so what are you saying?

Original ukulele music sheets from the 20s & 30s had the musical notation, the lyrics, the chords, & tab all on the one sheet.

(My brothers father in law had a pile of them.)

The only "right" way is the one that works best for you. It may not work best for someone else.

I don't use tabs or "the dots" these days. It's all done by ear (which may be why I sound so bad).

buddhuu said:

The only "right" way is the one that works best for you. It may not work best for someone else.

I don't use tabs or "the dots" these days. It's all done by ear (which may be why I sound so bad).

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For me, the goal is to play by ear. I can work out parts sometimes. I do not only sight read but will take different progressions and try to play them multiple ways. Sight reading is only a tool and not the end.

Notation gives me a visual representation. So I can see that I'm playing 2nd harmonic interval, 3rd harmonic interval, etc..


I try to listen to how these intervals' sounds, not just read them on the page. I realize that if I can start hearing the intervals then it should make playing by ear easier.

With sight reading, if you can associate the note with a sound, then this will help you when playing by ear.

Some people can naturally play by ear. I do not think this is an unusual skill. If you could start a child young enough, they could play by ear. I think the Suzuki method uses this. An adult could learn with the right teaching. Playing by ear is a skill, just as sight reading. They both take dedication to do well.

I need a system setup that breaks music down into parts. I have to see the parts and then build them into wholes. It's my learning style and it works for me. I'm trying to improve with the most efficient method for my learning style. Sight reading allows me to see the language of music. I can see a solo of a horn player and apply some of those ideas to the uke and guitar.

Another good reason to learn to sight read is that you'll be able to play songs you do not know with others. If you can read well, then you can pick up the piece of music and play along.

*I'm not equating sight reading to musicianship. They are not the same. Some people will not need to learn to sight read. They'll just pick up the language naturally. Unfortunately, I'm one of those people who needs to see the language and hear it.

buddhuu said:

The only "right" way is the one that works best for you. It may not work best for someone else.

I don't use tabs or "the dots" these days. It's all done by ear (which may be why I sound so bad).

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That's what I'm striving for on all my instruments. I do pretty well on my flutes, and I can fingerpick my ukuleles and banjos if I don't try to get too fancy.

I just got a Cataract cut out of my left eye so my sight is much better, but now I'm fighting a very poor memory. If it ain't one darned thing, it's another. The only thing I can do for the memory is play the same tune over and over, but that gets old pretty quick.

Now, I'm thinking of "composing on the fly"; just making the tune/song as I go along--might work . . .

Well, I guess I got no where to go but up. It's still fun, playing music though . . . ld:

Most tabs are missing perhaps the most important information, which is the note values (i.e. whole, half, quarter note, etch.) Music is a series of sounds in time. The temporal information is critical.

Some tabs will have note stems attached to the fret numbers, which helps.

Hey, Merry Christmas, Wicked, and you're right. Tabs also don't have slurs or dynamic symbols and other important stuff. Sheet music is gooder!

To all you music book publishers out there: Give us real music and words AND tabs--thanks. ld: