hey dudes. i was having an argument with a friend the other day about whether its more professional to be more adept at playing by sheetmusic or by ear. i can hear both sides, because when you have sheetmusic, you can play anything! you arent limited to what you know. on the other hand, if you know a song, but you dont have the sheetmusic, then your messed over. so i just wanted to hear your opinions on this. thanks so much. Zack

The best thing is to develop your skills in both directions, I think. I have met and played with professional musicians in national orchestras that are surprisingly (to me!) unable to play by ear.

When I started playing piano (at 8 y.o.) my teachers always emphasized playing by sheetmusic, along with a lot of scales and other technical skills but didn't pay to much attention to music listening and ear training. I found that much later with two jazz teachers.

I feel that with time, I lost a lot of my musical reading skills, but improved my ear and my ability to capture and understand a certain song or performance. I guess that my personal experience makes me think that both approaches are important.

-- José.

[This message has been edited by matias (edited 07-29-2002).]

Hi,
I fully agree with Matias and advise to develop both.
While performing I usualy use sheet-music with only melody-lines and chords. In fact I could play without, but I feel 'stronger' with the sheets in front of me. Details in chord-usage probably would disappear without the sheets and it is easy to lose the 'track'.
Professional Show Bands in The Netherlands all want musicians that are able to play without sheets and no mistakes are allowed.

Roel

Hi Folks,
Like a coin , this has two sides. I would like to share a story: When I was first learning to play guitar, my teacher wanted me to learn to play by reading music. I would watch him play and found that I could "mimic" what he was doing easier than reading music. He got the piont, when he was teaching me something, he would turn away saying that I should learn the music and not "mimic" what he was doing. Now I don`t know about anybody else but it seems to me that if you learn, whats the diference (of course he was prepairing me for solo work and to improvise). I learned the scales the "circle of 5th`s" and all that "stuff" but the real fun, at least for me is watching someone play and trying the same thing myself and find that I learn it faster than studying the music. I no longer take lessons and it`s been a long time since I have, But when I pick up my guitar after hearing a "blues-lick" or a "cool-lead" and try to play it , I think it comes easier now that I`m not taking lessons and I enjoy it more.
When it comes to playing KB or Organ I still rely on sheet music for some songs , while others I`ve memorized. So in the end I think it realy doesn`t matter it takes skill to do either !!
jedi

Ya know, I get asked this question quite often. I have been the Music Minister in my local church for going on twenty years. I am not proficient at sight reading a score. I have had the desire to be better at reading sheet music, but cling to my crutch that is " I would rather play with my own feeling put into the music rather than be forced into playing someone elses " I know, that is not an accurate statement all of the time, but it is the one I use. I'm sure we all wish we were better in certain areas of our talent, However, when you get older, and set in your ways its hard to change. (Or rather its hard to want to change.)

Regards,
Dennis Almond

I can relate to your story Jedi. When I had started taking piano lessons my teacher (who required scales and reading) said if I didn't practice she wasn't going to teach me. Boy talking about an opportunity to kill 2 birds with one stone. I still continued playing by ear and enjoying the music. Then we met a guy playing in a restaurant and my Mom (as moms will do) encouraged me to play for him. He liked my style and them became my teacher for the next 3 years. The first lesson he looked at me and said: "I heard you don't like to practice. That's OK. I get paid anyway ."
Well he was very good and allowed me to play whatever I wanted. I didn't know how to read music when we finished (without going Every Good Boy...) but he taught me a LOT of theory to use for playing. I also would watch his hand movements and memorize them. I used this method to play for the stage band in High School.
Now I can read right hand pretty well and due to the fact of learning a lot of theory can use the Fake Books to quickly learn a song I didn't know before. It is still easier if I have heard the song since I still play by ear along with the radio and tapes.

I now use the sheet music for some songs and memorize others for the same reasons Roel listed.

So I guess my answer is all of the above. The mores skills you have the better.

- Brian
(If you do what you enjoy you never have to work again.)

Hi Matias

Congratulations for perfect reply.
You said all.
Regards , Chico
Você sabe tudo,amigo.

I began formal classical piano lessons at 4 and quickly became a proficient sight reader. As impressive as it may seem, I really suffered because my 'playing by ear' abilities were not encouraged or developed. It wasn't till I got into high school (playing rock and then jazz) that I finally appreciated how important 'playing by ear' is to your development as a complete musician. The printed music on a page is just a means to document the notes and provide basic tempo & volume indicators. On top of that, most commerically sold pop sheet music is arranged using bland chords (not the ones actually played on the record), and it's arrangement typically bland & totally out of context' to the song's original style. Many song's grooves, accents & phrasing just cannot be indicated on paper. Only by listening (with your ears), and memorizing can you make the song 'come to life'.

I perform my core repetoire by ear (memory), but rely on leadsheets (w/chords & lyrics) to serve as more of a road map for songs I'm not that familiar with. If I know the chord progression of a song, I can then easily improvise the melody & arrangerment by ear.

As a solo keyboard entertainer, I think it's important not to give the audience the impression you're reading from music. They need to feel that the music is coming from YOU. When politicians give speeches, they sound far less convincing when they look as if they're reading it from text. Eye contact & interaction with your audience is critcally important.

Scott

Like Scott, I began to play at a very early age. I was so young I really cannot even remember it, except that my aunt had an organ and a piano and every time I went to her house I wanted to play on it. I started getting serious about it believe it or not, at the ripe old age of 6, when I received my first organ as a Christmas gift. I had no lessons early on, so I had to learn by ear.

Like Scott, I think that I also suffered ... in my case because I did not learn to read at all. I taught myself to read music much later in life and I think that it was important for me to do so, as keyboard playing takes up a lot of the spectrum of my life. It's best in my case to know both, but I would personally suffer a lot more if I couldn't play by ear rather than the reverse. I think in today's world though, especially with keyboards as my primary instrument, understanding midi notation is just as valuable an asset ( if not more in my own case ) as knowing standard notation. I almost never "write" in standard notation, but I often "jot" ideas inside of a midi piano roll.. even sometimes at my other computer.. There are no keyboards or modules available at that computer but it has sequencers and a SB card with soundfonts, so if an idea comes at least I can "jot" down a basic melody line or rythym track for it.

Like Scott, I began to play at a very early age. I was so young I really cannot even remember it, except that my aunt had an organ and a piano and every time I went to her house I wanted to play on it. I started getting serious about it believe it or not, at the ripe old age of 6, when I received my first organ as a Christmas gift. I had no lessons early on, so I had to learn by ear.

Like Scott, I think that I also suffered ... in my case because I did not learn to read at all. I taught myself to read music much later in life and I think that it was important for me to do so, as keyboard playing takes up a lot of the spectrum of my life. It's best in my case to know both, but I would personally suffer a lot more if I couldn't play by ear rather than the reverse. I think in today's world though, especially with keyboards as my primary instrument, understanding midi notation is just as valuable an asset ( if not more in my own case ) as knowing standard notation. I almost never "write" in standard notation, but I often "jot" ideas inside of a midi piano roll.. even sometimes at my other computer.. There are no keyboards or modules available at that computer but it has sequencers and a SB card with soundfonts, so if an idea comes at least I can "jot" down a basic melody line or rythym track for it.