How important is learning standard notation (for solo/finger style)?

hollymichele

Active member
Joined
Dec 27, 2018
Messages
43
Reaction score
0
I am taking James Hill's course and trying my best to learn standard notation, but I've hit a point where it's starting to go above my head. I'm sure it's ideal to learn standard notation - but my question is, are there enough solo arrangements out there written in tab that I'd have plenty to choose from without needing to learn standard notation? Or am I going to be doing myself a huge disservice not learning it?

My goal is to just have fun and play for myself. I'm not looking to be anywhere near a professional. But I do want to play solo / finger style...so I'm hoping there's enough out there in tab that I'd have plenty to choose from. Yay or nay? :)
 
I have been playing ukulele for two and a half years. I also did the James Hill's course. I did not really spent time to learn standard notation on ukulele until just a month ago. I wish I had learnt it from the beginning. It is a drag but I feel it is well worth the time. As far as tabs, there are plenty out there and you'll never run out of supply. I still prefers to play tabs given the choice, it is just much easier. However, learning to read standard notation now will broaden your musical ability by far. You will be able to play just about anything written on treble staff.
 
I learned notation for classical guitar years ago, and attempted a little piano here and there. When I took up 5 string banjo, it was tabs all the way. When I started ukulele, I found my previous guitar experience made it very confusing to play notation so I have stuck to tabs only. I have found a lot of satisfying tabs. I have enough knowledge to use an app like Guitar Pro to translate notation into tabs if needed. Tabs are very helpful in that they clearly help you with left hand fingering. That is always something that notation and stringed instruments have to deal with. A note can be played in many different locations. Figuring that all out is a whole extra layer to the process, and tabs help a lot (although sometimes you alter them for your own preference).

–Lori
 
Tabs are OK, learning a bit of music notation will allow you to create your own tabs, knowing how to read notation whilst playing will open up the whole musical landscape to you - take your choice. ;)
 
I play 'by ear' and by instinct. My brother in law has tried repeatedly over the past fifty years to teach me to read music, and whilst I am academically skilled in certain areas, my brain just goes 'la-la-la-la' after a few minutes and refuses to take the information in! But hey,whatever works for YOU is great, give it your best shot and go with it!
 
I learned standard notation in fourth grade music. The lines are EGBDF. You remember it as Every Good Boy Does Fine. The spaces are FACE.
 
I’ve been fighting this battle since I started playing stringed Instruments in April 2014.

I’ve been playing different musical instruments for 72 years, but mostly wind instruments and piano. I can read treble clef, tenor clef and bass clef. I started playing strings with ukulele for singing accompaniment but have since moved on to banjos, mandolin and tenor guitar.

I say I’ve been fighting because I’ve never liked tabs. I also fought against finger picking, but my ol’ brain would not learn and retain chords and insisted on playing melodies — ahhh, well . . .

So here’s what I’ve learned: If one is ONLY gonna finger pick, then standard notation is very useful and good to know. It opens up lots of material to play. However, if one is gonna sprinkle his/her music with chords, then tab is much easier. Even I prefer tabs if chords are involved. And, as long as one plays in just one tuning, standard notation is okay. Lastly, if one is gonna deal with music at all, notation is good to know, BUT . . . I think playing by ear is best of all. Lotsa musicians are able ta just pick up their axes and wail! And that’s what I’m continuing to blither with now.
:eek:ld:
 
Last edited:
Nothing you learn is ever wasted.

I’m a Simply Dreadful reader on keyboard but I’m nonetheless trying to learn notes “the right way” on guitar.

Maybe someday I’ll be a Simply Dreadful reader on frets too
 
Much the same point of view as several other replies ... TAB is fine if the music you want to play has already been converted (and there is a lot of it out there!), but there's an awful lot of music that is simply very unlikely to ever be "Tabbed" ... if you can't read music, at least to a basic level, you are potentially missing out on a very significant repertoire.

Restricting yourself to prepared TAB means you are restricting yourself to what other people want to play and have bothered to notate ... me, I want to play what I want to play, which may well be in standard notation in a collection of music prepared for the recorder, or tin whistle, or banjo, or ... or... or ... you get the idea ;)

YMMV :music:
 
Good thread. I am also a classical guitar and flute player, so read standard notation prolifically, even sight reading difficult pieces. On the uke, I took the time to learn the 'different' standard notation, but almost never use it. Like some many skills, if you don't use it you lose it. I have a gig repertoire of over 40 pieces in tab, so find very little (if any) need to use or transcribe standard notation to tab.
Ron
 
I used to know standard notation in elementary school but I've been away from it too long to read the notes well anymore.

As a base, it's nice to understand the symbols to fill in some gaps where tabs don't always convey the note length & rests well enough.
 
Being able to read standard staff notation is a big plus if you wish to have access to the greater musical world, e.g., play from any fake book, hymnal, violin music, flute music, etc., without going through the extra step of transcribing to tablature. It's also a big plus if you wish to study improvisational theory and composition as most higher level materials are linked to staff notation. However, the down side is it takes lots of practice and time to learn to read staff notation fluently. I've read music fluently on classical guitar and violin most of my life and reading on 'ukulele was a lot more challenging than I thought it would be. Not because reading on the 'ukulele is more difficult than guitar or violin but because the 'ukulele is similar to guitar but the same pitches are in totally different places! Plus the guitar is a transposing instrument (written an octave higher than concert pitch) and the 'ukulele is at concert pitch like a violin or flute. It took me about 6 months to become fluent at reading lead sheets on the 'ukulele and to make a separate memory buffer in my brain unique from guitar and violin reading.
 
You have started on standard notation with the JH course. I suggest that you consider learning the C major scale which has no flats or sharps. So you would learn to read notes on the treble clef and the scale on the first three strings (Book 2, lesson 1 in the Uke Way). This will enable you to use most fake books and similar resources to pick the melody on your ukulele. Then use the chords (notation not needed here) to create the chord/melody arrangement you want.

I use tab when available and notation only for single note melody. I do not consider learning to read notation with chords or where there might be two or more notes played together.
 
I started JH course too and got a little frustrated when I hit the third lesson and it seemed like you needed to know notation to continue.
I want.to do fingerpicking instead of strumming and I feel like I need to know notation to get any better.
 
There is a big difference between being able to read notation of the sheet and being able to dechifer it note for note when creating your own tab.

I am probably never going to able to play directly from the sheet, but learning the concept and being able to count which note it is and check for sharps or flats is not immensely difficult.
I only know what I learned in high school.

I would say that learning the basics is worth it. You can find a lot of tabs, but not always for that one song you really want to play.
 
Last edited:
It’s totally worth learning standard notation as it makes you a better musician generally and opens up a lot more possibilities when it comes to playing music with your ukulele.
 
My earlier post was to point out,that whilst I personally cannot grasp the written notation, it is of course a good thing to learn, if your musical incination leads you that way. I don't bungee jump either, but that's not that I could'nt if I wanted,I have just never wanted to!
 
Standard treble clef notation is good to know the basics. Just learn so no need to ask this question again hehe.
To be able to play from songbooks melodies. I tend to regard re-entrant G string same as linear G regarding this, so to know note names also down to "low" G.

I would not want ukulele advanced solos containing chords and fingerpicking with standard notation, but instead I do prefer tabs. Otherwise I do hate tabs in simpler things and like more standard notation for melody.
 
... are there enough solo arrangements out there written in tab that I'd have plenty to choose from without needing to learn standard notation?
Knowing how to read treble clef is a very handy skill, and bass clef also, but you don't necessarily have to learn it RIGHT NOW. The best advice I ever got about buying cameras was: if you don't already know you need the expensive new feature, then you don't need it yet. Same with music: if you don't currently need to read standard notation, don't bother for the time being. Later if you discover you can't find tab and all you've got is this piece of sheet music for the song you want to play, THEN you'll have the motivation to learn how.

Hopefully you have many happy years of learning and uke playing ahead of you. It's ok to skip the notation until you actually need it.
 
I personally LOVE tablature and think that it makes a ton of sense for uke/guitar/bass. I still read music often in order to work out a piece that i may not have a tab for and the truth of the matter is ALOT of tabs that are out there on the web are just plain wrong.... I also teach guitar and always start my students with some basic notation even though after a few lessons in we use mostly tabs.. It just gives them a foundation and they can take it further if they want.. BUt most just want to play now.
All in all Knowing how to read music will allow you to create your own tabs off of standard notation. At a minimum I think knowing beats of notes, time signatures is really important to know since it will translate to tabs as well.
 
Top Bottom