Tuesday, January 22, 2013

The Correct Means To Read Songs?

By Eugene Walley


I'm composing this write-up due to the fact that of an argument that lately happened in a piano online forum I participate in. The argument was on the correct usage of the words when explaining reading songs, particularly the term "sight reading".

If you are sight reading a piece of songs, is it the very first time you are playing it or have you played it previously, and as a result are only reading songs and no longer sight reading it? Some in the forum felt that the use of the term "sight reading" didn't accurately describe the procedure I was discussing at the time.

I hadn't realized there were such strong thoughts around the way we describe playing slab songs, but I discovered quickly that there are more than a couple of people with differing viewpoints on the use of words. I'll share both sides of the argument and offer up my very own ideas on the subject.

Many in the songs community see the term "sight reading" to suggest "checking out songs on first sight". This may be your definition as well, and is typically completion goal for anybody trying to read music.

Many sites and online forums are dedicated to the capability to play music at first sight, an ability that is very difficult to master, and could be irritating, particularly for the newbie piano pupil. A lot of piano players have to play through a piece of songs various times before being able to play it directly with.

So this definition would lead lots of to believe that sight reading is an impossible task for the newbie. I personally do not like this restricted view and for that reason I often agree with the more general meaning.

The opposite of the argument is more where I stand. The term "sight reading" to me merely indicates "playing songs by exactly what you see" in contrast to playing by ear or by rote (mimicking another user, like on YouTube).

I don't make a determination regarding whether it is the first reading or the hundredth. In reality, I would define one's sight reading capacity not just by the difficulty of the pieces they can play, however additionally by how many times it takes them to play it prior to the errors are marginal.

Even for a seasoned pro, every extra time reviewing a piece of songs generally results in even more precision. If you could be able to play a piece of songs by spending 5-10 minutes with it, playing it with a few times and then able to play it beautifully, would not that be an accomplishment of your capacity to read music by sight?




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