Do I need to read music

[aceuggy]

I've been playing bass for a couple of years now and I only play for my own enjoyment on my own, or with a mate who is a guitarist. I sometimes think that I would quite like to play in a band, nothing too serious, just a bit of fun, but perhaps do the occasional gig. I can get by using tab, listening to a track and playing along. Would that be good enough to play with a band, or would I be out of my depth?

[waynepunkdude]

I can't read a note and I'm in many bands.

[Tait]

Depends what type of band. For your run of the mill pub rock band, or something like that, then no. For something like classic music, then probably.

[BigRedX]

You only need to read music to be in a band if that's the way the other members of the band communicate their musical ideas.

[Jam]

I can't read music and I manage fine.

It is something I want to do in the future though.

[yorick]

The honest answer is no. I was able to read music as a wee nipper(35 something years ago), and i've totally forgotten how to...... Been in many bands between then and now, and i've never been asked to read a chart. If i'm learning stuff for a new band, i'll ask for a chord chart and a recording if there is one. Failing that, a chord chart and a load of rehearsal.

Nige

[xilddx]

[quote name='BigRedX' post='1003936' date='Oct 28 2010, 03:57 PM']You only need to read music to be in a band if that's the way the other members of the band communicate their musical ideas.[/quote]
So jazz is out. Count yourself lucky

I don't read either and I've been in many bands, some with records out.

[thisnameistaken]

I've never been asked to read a note in nearly 20 years of doing bands. I have endeavoured to learn to read in the past but the skills get rusty quickly because there's never any reading to do, other than practising it at home, so it often seems like a big waste of time.

[Low End Bee]

I hope not. It helps to know what the names of the notes are though.

[risingson]

[quote name='aceuggy' post='1003929' date='Oct 28 2010, 03:54 PM']I've been playing bass for a couple of years now and I only play for my own enjoyment on my own, or with a mate who is a guitarist. I sometimes think that I would quite like to play in a band, nothing too serious, just a bit of fun, but perhaps do the occasional gig. I can get by using tab, listening to a track and playing along. Would that be good enough to play with a band, or would I be out of my depth?[/quote]

You need to develop your ear and learn the notes on your fretboard. There are loads of ways to learn by ear, one of the best ways is simply by playing along with your favourite tracks and picking out the bass line or approximating it and thinking about how the bass works in the context of the track, maybe even what you'd play differently. Then think about how to transcribe the information your ear picks up and apply it to different keys etc. It's hard work but eventually you'll find your ear can translate very quickly what you have to do on your fretboard.

I have a few thoughts on tab... 1. Tab found on the internet a lot of the time is wrong, 2. Even if it is right, it doesn't give you a good musical footing, you don't know what notes you're playing on your fretboard and you end up thinking of your frets as numbers as opposed to actual notes and 3. it doesn't spell out rhythm very well, and in this respect you shouldn't waste your time trying to learn it when you could be learning the basics of reading music, which is IMO a much more productive use of your time.

Reading music is a useful thing to pick up, even if you never use it, the lessons you can learn from reading music will stay with you as a musician and you'll be all the better for it.

[Wil]

Absolutely not. I've yet to meet anyone in an originals band who has needed to either. Having a good ear is more important. In all the bands I've been in the guitarist or whoever writes the bulk of the music will bring an idea into rehearsal and play it, so being able to listen and come up with something appropriate is the key.

[xilddx]

[quote name='Low End Bee' post='1003946' date='Oct 28 2010, 04:00 PM']I hope not. It helps to know what the names of the notes are though.[/quote]
That is a good point.

Try to learn the names of the notes on the fretboard, and learn some major and minor scales. That will help you when they say, "The key of this song is A minor. Then you know you can play any notes in the A minor scale without f***ing up too much.

It really is very simple and won't take you long to master. It will help develop you ears too, so when I hum a melody, you will be able to play it on the bass and make up a bass line for the melody.

[lojo]

No you don't need to read music to play in a band,

You need to understand what you are supposed to play and then do that to a standard that pleases your band members and audience

There are 1000s of good non reader musicians providing great entertainment in pubs, clubs, functions etc, every week

There are also some very rich musicians who cant read


I am not saying though that I am happy I cant read, I wish Id learnt or had the time now to devote to it

I also wish I could do 8 step overs then place the ball in the corner of the net, but it does not stop me enjoying playing football


As someone else said, there will be a set way each band communicates within, you'll need to handle that, whatever the method is

Edited October 28, 2010 by lojo

[Doddy]

I'll always recommend learning to read to anyone-There are absolutely no downsides to learning it.
You may never use it in your current band,but you never know what may happen down the line. Plus,it
opens up a whole new world of information.You'll benefit from being able to buy and understand many
books that are available,or even just the exercises that are printed in magazines.

[BottomEndian]

In an originals scenario, I find being able to [i]write[/i] music down incredibly useful, especially if we've failed to record a rehearsal. If we jam out something pretty complicated, there's no danger of forgetting it because I can scribble it down in a few seconds.

And obviously it then helps to be able to read it again afterwards.

[JTUK]

If you have to opportunity to learn to read you should. A reader can get into any band with that skill..as long as his other skills are upto it, but for a non reader, there are some gigs they will never get.

[blind pilot]

I cannot read a single note, I too am self taught, and there are somethings the i struggle with, but I just push on and get there in the end.

As far as learning new stuff (covers) i normally print of the Tab, and spend some time on you tube watching other people play it!

Has worked for me, and in my situation, being able to read music offers no benefit at all!

[Doddy]

[quote name='blind pilot' post='1003989' date='Oct 28 2010, 04:19 PM']Has worked for me, and in my situation, being able to read music offers no benefit at all![/quote]

If you can't read,how do you know that it offers no benefit at all?

[lojo]

[quote name='blind pilot' post='1003989' date='Oct 28 2010, 04:19 PM']Has worked for me, and in my situation, being able to read music offers no benefit at all![/quote]


Im a non reader also and I learn from using the rewind button alot, tab can point in the right direction to save time, but never covers all the fills and exciting bits

We can get by without reading, but I don't think id go so far as to say there would be no benefit at all

[ZMech]

At a minimum, being able to read a chord sheet helps (especially with jazz). I got very annoyed when jamming with a guitarist, who made up a chord sequence, but wasn't able to tell me what the chords were. conversation went something like:
me: nice sequence, what're the chords?
guitard: __ fret on __ string, then __fret on __ string etc
[translate to notes in head as i don't think in fret numbers]
me:ok, and are they major or minor?
guitard: blank look
[At this point I leave the room]

Edit: at the same time, at a jam night last week, the trumpeter got annoyed that I didn't notice the b5 on one of the chords. won't be doing that one again.

Edited October 28, 2010 by Zach

[AndyTravis]

I've been in bands for 13 years, and i've never learned to read music.

It hasn't hindered me in the bands i've been in, but i would have applied for bigger gigs/sessions if my sight reading was good.

My mate Joe and I worked in a shop together 2 or 3 years ago, he is an amazing reader/pianist and noodled a bit on the bass.

An agent from Dubai pops in looking for a bass player for a high profile hotels resident band.

He reccomended me, but mentioned i couldn't read too well, and he's now out in Dubai playing bass every day, living in a 5-star hotel free food, free drink and he gets minnimum $2000 a month tax free...

Before he left, i showed him all the techniques and tricks he thought he'd need to play the setlist he had been given.

What does that tell you? If i'd have learned theory as well as technique, i'd be much better off financially and a lot more suntanned.

[xilddx]

[quote name='Zach' post='1004004' date='Oct 28 2010, 04:30 PM']At a minimum, being able to read a chord sheet helps (especially with jazz). [b] I got very annoyed when jamming with a guitarist, who made up a chord sequence, but wasn't able to tell me what the chords were[/b]. conversation went something like:
me: nice sequence, what're the chords?
guitard: __ fret on __ string, then __fret on __ string etc
[translate to notes in head as i don't think in fret numbers]
me:ok, and are they major or minor?
guitard: blank look
[At this point I leave the room]

Edit: at the same time, at a jam night last week, the trumpeter got annoyed that I didn't notice the b5 on one of the chords. won't be doing that one again.[/quote]
Really? If I was the guitarist, I would be annoyed back at you wondering why you haven't got the ears to just play along and express yourself. What on earth do you want the chord names for? How will they help you if you can't actually [b]hear [/b]what they are and how to interract with them with your bass? You actually left the room??! Your reaction was just plain rude and disrespectful to the guitarist. Would you have said that to Hendrix? There's a lot of rudeness on here about guitarists isn't there.

[Doddy]

[quote name='AndyTravis' post='1004014' date='Oct 28 2010, 04:38 PM']I've been in bands for 13 years, and i've never learned to read music.

It hasn't hindered me in the bands i've been in, but i would have applied for bigger gigs/sessions if my sight reading was good.

My mate Joe and I worked in a shop together 2 or 3 years ago, he is an amazing reader/pianist and noodled a bit on the bass.

An agent from Dubai pops in looking for a bass player for a high profile hotels resident band.

He reccomended me, but mentioned i couldn't read too well, and he's now out in Dubai playing bass every day, living in a 5-star hotel free food, free drink and he gets minnimum $2000 a month tax free...

Before he left, i showed him all the techniques and tricks he thought he'd need to play the setlist he had been given.

What does that tell you? If i'd have learned theory as well as technique, i'd be much better off financially and a lot more suntanned.[/quote]

So,I take it,that from that lesson, you are now learning to read?

[lojo]

[quote name='silddx' post='1004019' date='Oct 28 2010, 04:41 PM']There's a lot of rudeness on here about guitarists isn't there.[/quote]

come on, some of its justified

i do agree about ears though, play along

[lojo]

[quote name='AndyTravis' post='1004014' date='Oct 28 2010, 04:38 PM']What does that tell you? If i'd have learned theory as well as technique, i'd be much better off financially and a lot more suntanned.[/quote]


maybe, but don't let the ifs and buts eat you