I know the names of the note shapes: crotchet, minim, quaver, semiquaver et cetera. Some notes I can tell instantly at a glance what note it is. For others I resort to “all cows eat grass” or “FACE” et cetera.. Off the stave, at least for any distance, I need to carefully parse the ledger lines.
I have reasonable pitch, and, provided I’m not stressed, I can usually pitch somewhere not more than a tone away from the note printed on the page, and I can pitch intervals (if I’m not stressed). I also know most of the common musical terminology one finds on a choral score.
I can comfortably sing a tenor part in either bass or treble clef, but I am quite easily thrown where a part switches between them.
My better musically educated neighbour can tell instantly what key the key signature represents, and from sight whether the piece is in a major or a minor key. He can put a name to chords, and uses terms like “tonic“ or “diminished“ in ways which I only hazily understand, if at all.
Can I read music? I would say I am functionally literate, whereas he reads fluently.
Some people wear not reading music as a badge of honor to eschew instruction, and/or use it as a buffer or barrier to being recruited into musical activities. Like the ubiquitous "I can't carry a tune in a bucket," or "vocal talent skips a generation (ha-ha) and I missed it." Very rarely have I encountered anyone in either of those circumstances who expressed any kind of genuine desire to overcome it.
I am much the same, maybe a little more ‘fluent’- still limited, but I can read music adequately if not fully proficiently.
I was taught the basics at school and learnt a bit more using a piano tutor book at home. Then I had group violin lessons and played in the school orchestra, but my reading of bass clef is very limited. I did not do any music exams, or GCE. but I have never stopped learning what I need to know as a singer. I don’t have perfect pitch but am good at singing in tune and can mostly place an interval correctly.
Like @BroJames I know nothing of names of chords etc.
As for hymns, I have all the chords in my head and know immediately if the organist plays a wrong note.
Tomorrow will be interesting as we are singing with period instruments. There has been talk of Equal Temperament and Common Mean Tone.( My online research had me lost in all sorts of mathematical equations! ) I am looking forward to the experience.
Some people wear not reading music as a badge of honor to eschew instruction, and/or use it as a buffer or barrier to being recruited into musical activities. Like the ubiquitous "I can't carry a tune in a bucket," or "vocal talent skips a generation (ha-ha) and I missed it." Very rarely have I encountered anyone in either of those circumstances who expressed any kind of genuine desire to overcome it.
I’ve known quite a few who sincerely regretted it, who wished they could sing. But they were told by a music teacher early in life that they couldn’t. My mother-in-law, who was an excellent pianist, was told “the Lord gave you many gifts, but singing wasn’t one of them.” Her voice was fine, and she would have enjoyed singing in a group, but that early assessment was too deeply engrained.
I think telling a child they can’t sing is inexcusable.
I can carry a tune but can’t read music and was never taught to do so. I was brought up in a poor deprived area (a Luton council estate) and there were people in my class who didn’t learn to read words let alone music. Our lack of ability to read music is certainly not a ‘badge of honour’, more a a symptom of class difference and structural inequality.
My family was musical. Dad had a fine tenor voice and had been a boy treble in a pro-cathedral choir. My mother had been a Salvation Army Songster and concertina player. She could play the harmonium for hymns without music. They were poor and there was no money for music lessons, for them or for me and my sister. We all learnt by participation and absorption.
But where would we participate or absorb? We weren’t taught to read music or play instruments at school and we did not go to church. None of my parents, grandparents or 7 siblings could play a musical instrument or read music. And nobody I knew at school did either. Just like none of us went to college or university, because nobody we knew did.
This morning, prior to our rehearsal in the cathedral, I attended a chamber choir performance in the Chapter House. Beautiful music, wonderful acoustic but almost deafening in that space.
We had a good rehearsal ( on staging in the nave) with the cornetts, sackbuts and a chamber organ. I’m gathering my strength for tonight’s performance of music by Gabrielli x2, uncle and nephew, Lotti, Schütz, Palestrina.
This morning, prior to our rehearsal in the cathedral, I attended a chamber choir performance in the Chapter House. Beautiful music, wonderful acoustic but almost deafening in that space.
We had a good rehearsal ( on staging in the nave) with the cornetts, sackbuts and a chamber organ. I’m gathering my strength for tonight’s performance of music by Gabrielli x2, uncle and nephew, Lotti, Schütz, Palestrina.
Sounds like great repertoire... glad it went well.
We've been through the reading music issue before and the thing is there is more than one skill involved, especially in a choral context. I have choir friends who may well have less formal musical training than I do (I don't know) but can read their musical line as fluently as I read English. I have a good background in theory and piano but my ability to translate what's on the page into actual sound as a singer is very hit-and-miss. I've nevertheless managed to get my head around some challenging music but not without having people who are better readers sitting next to me...
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I have reasonable pitch, and, provided I’m not stressed, I can usually pitch somewhere not more than a tone away from the note printed on the page, and I can pitch intervals (if I’m not stressed). I also know most of the common musical terminology one finds on a choral score.
I can comfortably sing a tenor part in either bass or treble clef, but I am quite easily thrown where a part switches between them.
My better musically educated neighbour can tell instantly what key the key signature represents, and from sight whether the piece is in a major or a minor key. He can put a name to chords, and uses terms like “tonic“ or “diminished“ in ways which I only hazily understand, if at all.
Can I read music? I would say I am functionally literate, whereas he reads fluently.
I was taught the basics at school and learnt a bit more using a piano tutor book at home. Then I had group violin lessons and played in the school orchestra, but my reading of bass clef is very limited. I did not do any music exams, or GCE. but I have never stopped learning what I need to know as a singer. I don’t have perfect pitch but am good at singing in tune and can mostly place an interval correctly.
Like @BroJames I know nothing of names of chords etc.
As for hymns, I have all the chords in my head and know immediately if the organist plays a wrong note.
Tomorrow will be interesting as we are singing with period instruments. There has been talk of Equal Temperament and Common Mean Tone.( My online research had me lost in all sorts of mathematical equations! ) I am looking forward to the experience.
I think telling a child they can’t sing is inexcusable.
We had a good rehearsal ( on staging in the nave) with the cornetts, sackbuts and a chamber organ. I’m gathering my strength for tonight’s performance of music by Gabrielli x2, uncle and nephew, Lotti, Schütz, Palestrina.
Great set of names/rep.
We've been through the reading music issue before and the thing is there is more than one skill involved, especially in a choral context. I have choir friends who may well have less formal musical training than I do (I don't know) but can read their musical line as fluently as I read English. I have a good background in theory and piano but my ability to translate what's on the page into actual sound as a singer is very hit-and-miss. I've nevertheless managed to get my head around some challenging music but not without having people who are better readers sitting next to me...