There are so many options for where guitarists can play a note that by the time they’ve decided where to play it, the band has moved on to the next piece! There is definitely a lag time associated with this location issue. Outside of the occasional false fingering or extended technique, they pretty much hit a note with a particular valve or key fingering. Horn players have valve or key fingerings that correspond to a note. That note might be played with any finger in the course of a piece, but it’s always in the same location. Keyboard instruments have only one location for a particular note-say middle C. With its six strings tuned predominantly in fourths, the guitar has duplicate notes all over the fingerboard. While transcribing in this fashion is great for the ear, it’s not helpful for developing reading skills and once again, the guitarist puts off learning to read.Īnother reason why guitarists often don’t read well has to with how their instrument is tuned and laid out. Those who do try to document a transcription will frequently do so in tablature-useful for guitarists, but undecipherable to nonguitarists. But most guitarists who learn a piece from a recording will not formally write it down in traditional notation. This approach teaches a great deal about fingering, connectivity, nuance, and touch. I consider this exercise to be the most important aspect of any guitarist’s musical training. Many guitarists learn by ear, copying recordings of their favorite players. Aside from classical music, music that features guitar prominently (jazz, rock, pop, blues, folk, r&b, country, etc.) generally is not part of the written tradition.
These students play written music inĮnsembles: concert band, wind ensemble, orchestra, and marching band. Most string, brass, and woodwind players begin their instrumental lessons during elementary school, and reading is usually the focus. There are several reasons why we have more trouble reading than other instrumentalists do. First, many guitarists don’t start playing until their teens.
“How do you get the guitar player to turn down? Put a chart in front of him.” It’s no secret that guitarists are notorious for their poor reading skills.
His new book, Advanced Reading Etudes for Guitar, is available from Grescotmar Publications at We’ve all heard the joke. Mark White, a Guitar Department faculty member, has performed and given clinics in Asia, South America, and Europe for Berklee’s international programs.
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