Re: Any such thing as accurate sheet music?
Re: Any such thing as accurate sheet music?
Source: http://newsgroups.derkeiler.com/Archive/Alt/alt.guitar.bass/2008−02/msg00867.html
• From: \"js\" <nothing AT nothing DOT com>
• Date: Mon, 18 Feb 2008 02:26:04 −0500
Yeah, there is a \"classically trained\" way. But the VAST majority of kids
lack the discipline, willpower and LOVE of the music to put the time in. Sad
but true. You cant listen to nothing but Green Day and expect to play Bach.
I've taught several students who I would consider \"classically gifted\". They
are either Asperger's hermits or total free spirits. They're NOT the kids
stressing out about the lone Bb in song on page 21 of the Grade 2 Method
Book.
I think that parents are socially conditioned to think that \"classical
training\" whatever that means, is legitimate and therefore \"better\" than any
other option. It's like the old Finishing Schools, where women mastered all
sorts of useless skills for no other reason than to appear \"cultured\" to
their prospective husbands.
Understand, I was \"classically trained\" myself. My Grandma, who taught me
piano, was a church organist and pianist, and I did the whole method book
and classical literature thing. I struggled through piano folios of Bob
Segar and Aerosmith tunes, wondering why they sounded nothing like the
record.
And I hated every minute of it. It never dawned on me that I could just
listen to something on the radio and play along WITHOUT sheet music. Why
would it, since that's the way I was taught? It wasn't until I picked up a
bass that improvising and learning by ear made sense.
Still, I'm big on classical music for piano pedagogy. I think it's great for
learning to read, and it's awesome for dexterity, and if you pull off
something like a Bach Minuet, it's a great feeling of accomplishment. It's
just not the be all−end all of playing.
I'm just trying to say \"look, that stuff is good, but here's the way music
since 1900 does it. If you want to play with other people and make $$$, it's
probably a good idea to learn this way too\"
Re: Any such thing as accurate sheet music? 1

Re: Any such thing as accurate sheet music?
\"Benj\" <bjacoby@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:281c4713−77dd−4b1a−af9c−9fa031ebc9d4@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
On Feb 17, 1:36 pm, \"JoeSpareBedroom\" <dishborea...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
\"js\" <nothing AT nothing DOT com> wrote in
messagenews:47b87c33$0$16655$4c368faf@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
What's strange is you don't get this from the parents of bass,
guitar,
or
drum students. It's definitely a piano/classical music thing.
Makes me remember why I quit teaching piano before.
If parents think \"classically trained\" is based on some mysteriously
strict
definition, how do they explain the difference between someone like Van
Cliburn, and 1000 other pianists whose musical background is similar,
but
whose playing makes people snore?
Thousands of photographers have studied Ansel Adams' zone system for
managing exposure. Their photographs never appear in museums, though.
I think the problem with piano is that there actually IS a
\"classically trained\" thing. This would be where the player learns to
read piano music to the point where virtually ANY sounds the
instrument can make can be ordered from the music sheet. One has to
study and practice to a level where the player can indeed read
virtually ANY music and reproduce it on the instrument and having done
that is THEN required to go beyond mere note for note duplication into
emotional interpretation of the music composition. THAT is the
\"classical\" thing.
But of course there is another way. Ever see the Guy on PBS that they
Re: Any such thing as accurate sheet music? 2

Re: Any such thing as accurate sheet music?
put one during money−grubbing times who teaches \"piano in a flash\" or
something like that? What he teaches is a basic melody−chords
approach. One does NOT play piano music exactly as written. You cop
the melody and add the chords by a knowledge of what notes make what
chords rather than by reading tiny notes off a staff. You read chord
NAMES not notes! This is a common technique for lounge players etc. I
did study \"classical\" piano for years, but was never very good.
However, my teacher (who was also a popular lounge player of organ and
piano) eventually was asked by me to teach me the melody−chords
thing. I loved that and took to it right away.
But in the case of \"duplicating\" Billy Joel, there is a problem. If
you do your own inventions then it isn't Billy Joel. And for it to be
Billy Joel you need an accurate transcription of exactly what he's
playing (and having accomplished that, you still will have to add his
interpretation of the music as well). All of these tend to make these
issues in keys rather difficult. Hmmm. That is probably why I play
bass now!
.
Re: Any such thing as accurate sheet music? 3