When I have a new student that has never learned any kind of music at all, I like to go over a few basic things about reading music. For most of my piano and flute students, they either have a theory book along with their other lesson materials or they have learned a little bit at school. But many voice students haven’t learned as much theory or music reading and many do not think they need to know it.
Many singers rely on their ears and never learn to read music. While you can be somewhat successful as a singer who doesn’t know how to read music, you are missing a vital part of what’s important in your music training. As a singer, you are often working with instrumentalists and accompaniments, so its important you know a little bit about them to be able to work with them properly.
For example, you need to know how to count in music so you know how long to hold a note or when to come in with your next entrance. Or if the accompaniment is in a key too high or too low for you, you have to have an idea of what key is good for you so you can make adjustments. Or if you are learning a new song, being able to plunk out the melody on the piano to practice it can be extremely helpful.
I’ve put together two different booklets with some of the basic theory you need to know to help you learn how to read and understand music. The information in these booklets, I’ve gathered from a variety of sources that you can find in any generic music theory book, along with some specific examples borrowed from the Essentials of Music Theory Complete Lesson Book by Alfred’s Publishing. There is a booklet for younger students as well as one for the average aged student. While these booklets are geared towards voice students, they can be used with piano or flute students as well.
Miss Donna 4 Music 