Seasonal Sight Reading Challenge

By John Cage, of course!

John Colter
 
I know this was a joke and I had the seasonal chuckle, but I have a serious question appertaining to this issue. The ukulele is my first stringed instrument and I have some difficulty in sight reading with it because stringed instruments have several options when it comes to a note. For example, on the flute a C is a C. There is one way to play it. On the ukulele you can use the open C string or the fifth fret of the G (if you have low G strings). Does anyone have any insight or input on how to sight read with a stringed instrument?
 
I know this was a joke and I had the seasonal chuckle, but I have a serious question appertaining to this issue. The ukulele is my first stringed instrument and I have some difficulty in sight reading with it because stringed instruments have several options when it comes to a note. For example, on the flute a C is a C. There is one way to play it. On the ukulele you can use the open C string or the fifth fret of the G (if you have low G strings). Does anyone have any insight or input on how to sight read with a stringed instrument?

This was also my first fretted instrument (came from piano) and had the same question. I found different folks handle it differently. Sam Muir will put a position number (in Roman numeral) when it's not 1st position, but most (like James Hill) say there are times when looking at the tab is the easiest way to solve this. I tried hiding the tab on sites that allowed that and just using the treble clef. I gave up on that and added the tabs back in. These days I try using the standard notation but find I always fall back in reading the tabs in any complicated passage. I'm guessing some of what you're doing may not have tabs, so perhaps Sam Muir's approach would be the best.
 
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This was also my first fretted instrument (came from piano) and had the same question. I found different folks handle it differently. Sam Muir will put a position number (in Roman numeral) when it's not 1st position, but most (like James Hill) say there are times when looking at the tab is the easiest way to solve this. I tried hiding the tab on sites that allowed that and just using the treble clef. I gave up on that and added the tabs back in. These days I try using the standard notation but find I always fall back in reading the tabs in any complicated passage. I'm guessing some of what you're doing may not have tabs, so perhaps Sam Muir's approach would be the best.

This was also my first fretted instrument (came from piano) and had the same question. I found different folks handle it differently. Sam Muir will put a position number (in Roman numeral) when it's not 1st position, but most (like James Hill) say there are times when looking at the tab is the easiest way to solve this. I tried hiding the tab on sites that allowed that and just using the treble clef. I gave up on that and added the tabs back in. These days I try using the standard notation but find I always fall back in reading the tabs in any complicated passage. I'm guessing some of what you're doing may not have tabs, so perhaps Sam Muir's approach would be the best.

Hmmm. What I get from that (and this is me and not Ed1) is there is no sight reading with fretted instruments. Since every note has two or three options, it is all about arrangement. And one cannot arrange without thought; it is pre-meditated. The choice you make in reference to which fret you use for a certain note is predicated on what comes afterward and what came beforehand.

I am obviously overstating the case a bit. For example I purchased the sheet music for "Gloomy Sunday." It had three flats and was obviously in C minor. I "arranged" it to start on the C which is on the 5th fret of the G string. After that assumption, everything flowed from there as the song progressed in an Aiolian mode outward and onward from the C. However I had to choose which C4 to use as the basis of the song. All the ensuing fret choices were a result of that first arranged choice. So it isn't a lost cause; you can "sight read" with 80% efficacy after you've made some executive decisions as to root notes and other considerations. But sight reading isn't as straight forward as it is on piano or other orchestral instruments.
 
I know this was a joke and I had the seasonal chuckle, but I have a serious question appertaining to this issue. The ukulele is my first stringed instrument and I have some difficulty in sight reading with it because stringed instruments have several options when it comes to a note. For example, on the flute a C is a C. There is one way to play it. On the ukulele you can use the open C string or the fifth fret of the G (if you have low G strings). Does anyone have any insight or input on how to sight read with a stringed instrument?

I think the best notation for uke is tabs + staff (standard) notation, so reading only staff notation is just doing it the wrong/hard way.

The staff notation has the benefit of easily figuring the relative note pitch, intervals, arpeggios at a glance (i.e. a lot easier to read ahead and , of course, singing), but IMHO it should be supplemented with tabs so you can use the tabs to play and the staff to read ahead.


BTW, I've played the guitar for 2 years using just the staff notation (this was because I took guitar classes at a university). The recommendation I can give you (if you want to sight read with only the staff notation) is to practice the scales, practice the scale, and practice the scales. With the scales down, you can easily translate staff notes into notes on the strings.
 
Hmmm. What I get from that (and this is me and not Ed1) is there is no sight reading with fretted instruments. Since every note has two or three options, it is all about arrangement. And one cannot arrange without thought; it is pre-meditated. The choice you make in reference to which fret you use for a certain note is predicated on what comes afterward and what came beforehand.

I am obviously overstating the case a bit. For example I purchased the sheet music for "Gloomy Sunday." It had three flats and was obviously in C minor. I "arranged" it to start on the C which is on the 5th fret of the G string. After that assumption, everything flowed from there as the song progressed in an Aiolian mode outward and onward from the C. However I had to choose which C4 to use as the basis of the song. All the ensuing fret choices were a result of that first arranged choice. So it isn't a lost cause; you can "sight read" with 80% efficacy after you've made some executive decisions as to root notes and other considerations. But sight reading isn't as straight forward as it is on piano or other orchestral instruments.

What you are talking about is a problem with most instruments where there must be some planning ahead. For example, with piano, some times you have to get the fingering correct to play some passages without running out of fingers (which causes gaps in the music). This would be impossible to do sight reading.

So, if this is what you are trying to solve, then you can't solve it. And this is exactlly why I think tabs are needed for ukulele (in additional to staff).
 
I find it works better in the key of Eb.

I'll think about it. Obviously Eb is the relative major of C minor and they have the same notes. I naturally assumed it was the minor key because of the lugubrious theme of the song and because I tend to favor the minor sound. But I'll try to look at it as Eb major and see how that affects my understanding.
 
I'll think about it. Obviously Eb is the relative major of C minor and they have the same notes. I naturally assumed it was the minor key because of the lugubrious theme of the song and because I tend to favor the minor sound. But I'll try to look at it as Eb major and see how that affects my understanding.

Another way of figuring minor/major is the minor scale changes with harmonic and melodic runs. Just find those, and you can see what the intentions are. Intentions is useful if the key changes in the music.
 
BTW, I've played the guitar for 2 years using just the staff notation (this was because I took guitar classes at a university). The recommendation I can give you (if you want to sight read with only the staff notation) is to practice the scales, practice the scale, and practice the scales. With the scales down, you can easily translate staff notes into notes on the strings.

Thanks for sharing your experience. That sounds like something right up my alley. Because of my history with music, tablature is very unappealing. Now I at least have a confirmed path to pursue.
 
Thanks for sharing your experience. That sounds like something right up my alley. Because of my history with music, tablature is very unappealing. Now I at least have a confirmed path to pursue.

I mentioned what helped me to translate staff to strings. I had to use only staff because the professor only taught in staff and all the books only had staff notations. Note that I didn't say staff is the best notation for uke.

At first, I didn't like tabs because I've been playing piano for years before learning guitar. Plus off the negatives of music without staff as I mentioned; also tabs assumes you've tuned a certain way, so it felt restrictive. In fact, I never learned tabs until just a few years ago; but now, I realized that tabs isn't bad at all when it comes to the uke; if it is printed along with staff, then I get the best of both worlds.
 
Another way of figuring minor/major is the minor scale changes with harmonic and melodic runs. Just find those, and you can see what the intentions are. Intentions is useful if the key changes in the music.

What measure should I look to find these harmonic and melodic runs.
 
I mentioned what helped me to translate staff to strings. I had to use only staff because the professor only taught in staff and all the books only had staff notations. Note that I didn't say staff is the best notation for uke.

At first, I didn't like tabs because I've been playing piano for years before learning guitar. Plus off the negatives of music without staff as I mentioned; also tabs assumes you've tuned a certain way, so it felt restrictive. In fact, I never learned tabs until just a few years ago; but now, I realized that tabs isn't bad at all when it comes to the uke; if it is printed along with staff, then I get the best of both worlds.

I understand what you're saying, but tabs just aren't my cup of tea. My goal is to be independent. With tabs you're dependent on the person who arranged the music and created the tabs. For example, I was listening to some Sainte-Colombe. If I waited 'til someone tabbed the concerto I want, I would die without having played it. Or, I could just get the sheet music and play it.

You're right of course. reading music isn't the easier option. However it appeals to me and my minimalist approach. Plus, there is some emotional baggage with me and sight reading. When I was younger and playing woodwinds, sight reading was the gold standard. Someone would plop a piece of paper on your manhasset, and you played it. That's my ideal.
 
By John Cage, of course!

John Colter

A guy in my neighborhood was a piano performance major in college. I didn't really know him as he's 5 years older than me. He was always a bit of an oddball and seemed quite impressed with himself. A pianist friend of mine was a year or two behind him in college. Told me this guy did the Cage piece as part of his senior recital.
 
I know this was a joke and I had the seasonal chuckle, but I have a serious question appertaining to this issue. The ukulele is my first stringed instrument and I have some difficulty in sight reading with it because stringed instruments have several options when it comes to a note. For example, on the flute a C is a C. There is one way to play it. On the ukulele you can use the open C string or the fifth fret of the G (if you have low G strings). Does anyone have any insight or input on how to sight read with a stringed instrument?

Sight-reading pertains to reading the music notation. One sight-reads the notes on the printed page. Where one plays those notes on a ukulele depends on how many different locations the uke offers for that specific pitch. Most of the time, the player’s decision is based on convenience or efficiency of fingering (distance being a key factor). One’s sight-reading ability does not change simply because an instrument has more (or less) options for a particular pitch (note). When a uke has more than one location for a particular note, one can analyze the music and decide in advance which location will work best. If one knows the ukulele fingerboard well, the decision can be made on the fly, at the time of playing. When I first attempted finger-style, I practiced the chromatic C scale, so that I could learn where all the flats and sharps were, in addition to the whole notes. I then worked on identifying, and becoming familiar with, the multiple locations on the neck for each note (pitch). At that point, when multiples existed for a certain note, I began intentionally fretting one of the less familiar locations when playing a piece of music. This helped me embed the various locations in my brain, and helped create muscle memory between combinations of notes when being played. Most of the time, I can now automatically choose the most efficient option while playing, without having to figure it out in advance. Having said that, I do find tabs a lot easier to play from when a song contains a number of chords, shown in the music notation as three or more stacked notes. However, if you don’t have a tab for a tune, you can make the sight-reading easier by writing the name of the chord above the stacked notes.

Don’t know if any of this helps you, Ripock, as you already seem to be quite familiar with your uke’s fingerboard. But thought I’d put it out there anyway, in case another reader finds it useful. :)
 
Don’t know if any of this helps you, Ripock, as you already seem to be quite familiar with your uke’s fingerboard. But thought I’d put it out there anyway, in case another reader finds it useful. :)

It is useful. I don't have a problem with sight reading per se. I can immediately see what notes the staff says I need to play. The problem is in deciding how to implement it. It is a bit frustrating because with other instruments, there is no thought involved. The key is most definitely to do it frequently because I fancy that all these options are illusive. Probably in practice there are go-to frets that any experienced player goes to. In short, I need to stop talking about it and start doing it more.
 
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