LearnJazzPiano.com archives: Learning to read music

stabmasterflex -- 05/07/2005, 10:33:37 -- #13612

I've been playing in bands for about 10 years and have taken jazz piano lessons for 2-8 months at a time to help with my playing.  I'd say i'm an intermediate to beginner jazz piano player but i can't really read music fluently at all.  If i want to figure out a new tune from the fake book it sometimes takes me 20-30 minutes just to get through reading the notes/beats correctly and i still usually don't play it 100% correctly unless i hear it being played.   What is the best way for me to go about learning to read music so i become more fluent.  Should i start by turning on the metranome and clapping the beats then slowly reading the notes?  Is there a good book for someone where i'm at with my playing?  Any advice would be greatly appreciated thanks.

albetan -- 05/07/2005, 12:04:19 -- #13615

Please write "piano at sight" in search engine (upwards) selecting "files"

orson -- 05/07/2005, 20:44:05 -- #13621

I'd recommend buying a big fat book of EASY piano tunes, several hundred pages, and a notch or two lower in difficulty than what your are actually trying to play.  Doesn't really matter what type of music, as long as its in a style you are relatively familiar with, so you will recognize your own mistakes.  Every day, play a tune at whatever speed you can manage for 10 minutes or so; just get as far as you can.  The next day, turn the page and start again on a new tune, even if you weren't able to play the previous day's tune perfectly.  Read something new every day.

Styles -- 05/07/2005, 22:08:58 -- #13625

^^^ exactly I suggest Musictheory.net to help with identifying notes, keys, intervals, keys, chord types. I suggest studying reading in intervals, learning the distance between notes as the emphasis for reading as well as the individual tone itself to help to sight read. The sheer familiarty with theory in both notation and sound should help you to sight read

Copyright © 2005 by Scot Ranney. All rights reserved.

Click Here for more information about performances and clinics. Click Here to sign up for Scot's music announcements.