Tuesday, February 20, 2007

Should Piano Players Be Able To Read Music?

When I first started out in music I was 7 years old. Saxophone was my first instrument and the first thing I learned was how to read music.

I remember liking it and feeling a sense of accomplishment as I learned how to identify quarter notes, half notes, and so on. But I also remember playing without sheet music in the privacy of my bedroom. In fact, I would let that horn wail and allow my fingers free reign on the instrument.

What a feeling it was to be able to play freely - and without my horn teachers head over my shoulder.

What I'm getting to is this - learning how to read music is a good thing for it allows you to play what other musicians have written - but I wonder if one could do without it AND still be considered a "good" musician.

Your thoughts?

1 comment:

  1. Anonymous7:10 AM

    Of course one can do without knowing how to read music and yet can be considered a good musician. There are many examples of famous musicians including pop stars who don't read music but played and created songs that are admired by millions. It is one of the natural abilities of human kind. It is analogous to a great footballer who does not know how to calculate mathematically the projectile of a football when he kicks it. What matters most is he can kick the ball accurately into the goal post when others cannot do as good.

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