Subject: Re: Learning
Date: Fri, 06 Jun 2008 16:49:43 -0400
Pt writes :
> 50 years ago most schools taught music from 1st grade on.
> Everyone learned music basics and how to read music.
> It was part of life and basic education in those days.
I don't think music was that widespread, at least not in
my corner of the woods. I was in 1st grade 45 years ago
and I don't recall music classes. We did sing a hymn or
two. I got piano lessons so I learned early on but very
few of my friends did.
> We learned scales, how many sharps or flats in a key, how to form
> triads and understood the difference between 3/4 and 4/4 time.
Even with piano lessons I mainly learned how to read and
play simple pieces (Mexican Hat Dance anyone ?) but little
theory for theory's sake. I didn't know what a triad was
until a couple of years ago.
> My first piano recital on stage was at age 6.
Same here. My second was a year later and I was laughed
off the stage when I was so nervous that I couldn't see where
the piano was (this was after a few months of torture by
my mother insisting that'd go against all my protests. I
only got back on that stage this year.
> Someone may be trying to learn modes before they know intervals.
I agree that this is weird. People hear about modes and figure
they should be doing something with them. This is a big problem
with the Internet as you're always finding out something else
that you should know or should be doing. It's like you have to
learn everything all at once. To hell with modes. I've gone
back to learning the fretboard by picking out tunes in my head
(without looking). Modes are only there to explain what
something is -after- it's been played. I'm sure most of us could
hum a tune that would be in a given mode and we wouldn't even
realize it.
> If you are serious about learning music and to play a guitar get
> yourself a reputable teacher who will start from the beginning.
It's not clear to me where that might be. I think it's pretty
safe to say that 99.999% of the millions of kids that got
tradition music lessons from a traditional teacher never went
on to become musicians. I think the first several years should
be spent improvising by ear, along with a teacher would be
great.
I'm currently going through the 12-tape PBS documentary on the
history of jazz. One thing is for sure, Louis Armstrong didn't
do scales and modes.
Paul P
> 50 years ago most schools taught music from 1st grade on.
> Everyone learned music basics and how to read music.
> It was part of life and basic education in those days.
I don't think music was that widespread, at least not in
my corner of the woods. I was in 1st grade 45 years ago
and I don't recall music classes. We did sing a hymn or
two. I got piano lessons so I learned early on but very
few of my friends did.
> We learned scales, how many sharps or flats in a key, how to form
> triads and understood the difference between 3/4 and 4/4 time.
Even with piano lessons I mainly learned how to read and
play simple pieces (Mexican Hat Dance anyone ?) but little
theory for theory's sake. I didn't know what a triad was
until a couple of years ago.
> My first piano recital on stage was at age 6.
Same here. My second was a year later and I was laughed
off the stage when I was so nervous that I couldn't see where
the piano was (this was after a few months of torture by
my mother insisting that'd go against all my protests. I
only got back on that stage this year.
> Someone may be trying to learn modes before they know intervals.
I agree that this is weird. People hear about modes and figure
they should be doing something with them. This is a big problem
with the Internet as you're always finding out something else
that you should know or should be doing. It's like you have to
learn everything all at once. To hell with modes. I've gone
back to learning the fretboard by picking out tunes in my head
(without looking). Modes are only there to explain what
something is -after- it's been played. I'm sure most of us could
hum a tune that would be in a given mode and we wouldn't even
realize it.
> If you are serious about learning music and to play a guitar get
> yourself a reputable teacher who will start from the beginning.
It's not clear to me where that might be. I think it's pretty
safe to say that 99.999% of the millions of kids that got
tradition music lessons from a traditional teacher never went
on to become musicians. I think the first several years should
be spent improvising by ear, along with a teacher would be
great.
I'm currently going through the 12-tape PBS documentary on the
history of jazz. One thing is for sure, Louis Armstrong didn't
do scales and modes.
Paul P
Subject: Re: Learning
Date: Sat, 7 Jun 2008 07:39:56 -0400
>
>> 50 years ago most schools taught music from 1st grade on.
>> Everyone learned music basics and how to read music.
>> It was part of life and basic education in those days.
I remember the music teacher coming in once a week when I was in first
grade. She wore enough perfume to gag a mule and I had no idea what she was
talking about. She drew these little tic-tack-toe things and little "b"s on
all these lines and said things like,"The quarter note gets one beat,"
without ever taking the time to explain or demonstrate what a beat was. I
was too intimidated to ask. Every other week we'd sing songs while she
played the piano. I had no idea what the dots and lines had to do with the
singing. She made us listen to scratchy 78s of some guy named Gershwin. He
never sang. I was lost.
Years later when teaching myself guitar, I racked and wrung my brain trying
to remember this stuff, but essentially had to re-learn it.
In general, my early "music education" was a waste of time.