I get asked this question all the time from students, Internet friends and fans, even co-workers (yes there and MANY working professionals out there who don’t read music)… Actually, I’ll bet that last statement sort of answers the question pretty clearly. If there are plenty of working pros out there who don’t read then do you need to know it?

I guess not, huh?

I mean, think about it… If you have a good ear, meaning you can pick up lines, harmonies and song structures, and you have a very good memory you technically have everything you really need to get a ton of work. Of course I’m assuming you’re already a very proficient player on your instrument.

So why read? Why study music “theory?” It is, after all, just a theory and not actual “fact” – I’ll blog on this subject later 🙂

I’ll be completely honest, I can’t even remember the last time I was paid to read a sheet of music! I think it must have been back when I still performed orchestrally, or maybe a few one-off trio gigs (but even then I wasn’t reading cuz I’ve got most of those standards memorized anyway). Any time I’m in the studio I’m going off the scratch track. Anytime I’m backing an artist I’m going off their cd. Anytime I’m on tour I’m playing songs I’ve done a million times. Anytime I’m playing at church I’m reading a chord chart (not actual music notation), and even then I’m playing off memory because I hate being glued to a chart onstage. I guess the only time I actually READ music is in my own personal practice time and while I’m teaching a student how to read.

So why do you need it?

Besides the obvious, which is the fact that it opens doors for you to gigs you would have never gotten before (gigs that require reading, that is), which even as I’ve stated already are pretty few and far between for me, reading music acts as a tool that I use to help me memorize music. I’ll put it to you this way: in a given week I probably have 80 new songs to learn (between weekend church services, local gigs, tracking bass in the studio and the 550 students that walk into my music academy) EVERY WEEK! And if you think that I’ve memorized all of that music every week then you think that I’m much better than I actually am!

Well, actually to an extent I have memorized them. When I need to learn a new song I do it this way: I start by listening to it once all the way through, without playing along. Just soak it in and don’t worry about keys, licks, forms or anything. Then I turn to a sheet of staff paper. I draw out bars and begin charting out the chords. NOTICE that in not writing note for note transcriptions, but rather just a chord chart or lead sheet (it’s faster and easier). Within one or two listens I have the whole song figured out and I’m done. This process is important for me because it causes me to really analyze the song and focus on what it’s doing for a solid 5-10 minutes (depending on the length of the tune). Now at this point I don’t really need the chart anymore, but the process of writing it out helped me memorize it.

“Wait a minute, I thought you said you couldn’t memorize 80 songs a week?”

You’re right, I’ll forget it in about 2 minutes. So I place the chart in my gig bag until I need it. That way I can look at it just before the gig to jog my memory, and as long as I did a good job charting it I’ll be in good shape to perform it. At least that’s how I work.

“Wait a minute, charting has nothing to do with reading music.”

You’re right again. How does reading music fit in to this equation then, if all you need to know is how to chart?

Well, like I said, on my first listen all I do is listen. This gives me a chance to really hear what the bass player is doing. And chances are that if he’s playing on this record with this particular artist, that means that they chose him for a particular reason; i.e. he is a VERY good bass player (or he was the right fit for the job). In other words, he knows what he’s doing and I should give what he did a try before I try to make up my own bass part. He got the gig, not me, so obviously I should start there.

So as I’m listening I notice, “Wow! That turn around lick was sick !”

I jot it down, note for note, on my chart where it occurs.

“Dang, that kick pattern is perfect!”

I use rhythmic-notation to help me remember the syncopations and distinguish the verses from the choruses and bridge.

“The way he stays up in the higher octave for every chorus is cools, except for the last one when he finally brings it down to the lower octave to drive it home, was a powerful trick!”

Noted.

So you see, even though I’m rarely paid to read music, I actually read music EVERY DAY, and if I didn’t I wouldn’t be able to keep my job because my memory isn’t that good. Of course there are situations where I read just for the fun of it but we’re talking about tools for your profession here, not hobbies.

The truth is that reading is an IMMENSE tool to have at your disposal, even if you don’t plan on becoming a great sight-reader and taking those kinds of gigs (which of course are out there, I’m just not interested in them).

What do you think?