Guitarists and Learning To Read Music

To begin the third season of The KW Guitar Society I have decided to write about a touchy subject, reading music for guitarists. I am sure you have heard this joke: “How do you get a guitarist to turn down? Place music in front of them!”

In my teaching career, reading music has always been a subject of debate for me personally. About 8 years ago I just happened to have 8 new students(all 10 years old) and all starting guitar at the same time(September). Here was my chance to experiment. I began 4 students with reading music and 4 students reading tab. The results might surprise you.

Here is what happened:

The tab students quickly moved along and were quite happy playing songs they knew and can hear in their head.
The music readers moved at a slower pace, absorbing the foundations of musical elements.

After a year or more, the music readers were jealous of their counterparts because the tab students could play cooler songs.

All that made sense to me because we live in a society where instant gratification is hard to ignore.

But after the second year or so, something strange started to happen, which surprised me!

The tab players were peaking. There are only so many songs you can play that are within your hearing capabilities. For them it was the same old thing and they couldn’t think outside the limited tab world that was built for them.

By the third year the music readers were moving at a lightning pace because they could read music beyond their capabilities. Which meant, they were always pushing the limits and getting better. They were also able to do that, because a solid base of music theory was created for them.

Now, the tab players were in high school recognizing their counterparts were far beyond them. Some tried reading but did not have the patience etc. Most quit.

As a music educator, the results were clear. Instant gratification will only take you so far. Whereas setting a foundation leads to lifelong learning.

I witnessed that this summer at guitarists Dave Battlers house here in Kitchener. His music room was full of sheet music and as a guitarist in his sixties he was beyond amazing! And if you ask him, he still feels he has lots of room to grow.

If you are a guitar player/teacher please take a moment and reflect on this? Are you taking the path of a life-long learner? Does your equipment rate an A+ and your foundational skills a D-?

You will never regret learning to read music,  having a firm musical foundation and experiencing the joys of improving even after 3o years of playing!

Stephen Zurakowsky
Artistic Director