Guitar Music Notation

Is learning how to read music notation rather than just sticking with guitar tablature really necessary?

Lately I haven’t really been doing much actual playing on my guitar, but instead I’ve started trying to learn how to read music notation rather than just tabs. My boyfriend tells me that it’s just a waste of time, but I’m really not sure of what to think. I’m kinda in the middle at the moment. Any advice?

I agree with Gene. First off, the more ways you learn to think about music, the better a musician you’ll be. Second, professional gigs NEVER hand you a tab sheet, only standard notation. If you read only tab you are considered an amateur. Third, standard notation actually gives you more info than tab, in a more readable and compact way. It’s a bit harder to than tab when you first start out, but once you can read standard notation you’ll never want to go back to tab.

That said, what really counts is your overall musicianship. I’ve met plenty of people who can read anything and are helpless without sheet music. That’s just as bad as only being able to read tab. And I’ve known great players who don’t get called for reading gigs.

The “ultimate” guitarist has great technique, a great ear, lots of tunes under his or her belt, and the ability to read standard notation OR tab OR play without ANY music.

1 FUNDAMENTAL GUITAR SKILLS: Learn Standard Music Notation

Guitar Reading Workbook $12.62 Learn to read standard music notation on the guitar with this easy step-by-step book! Great for beginners or more-experienced “by ear” players who want to start reading, it explains notation reading in detail, relating notes on the staff to guitar fingerboard diagrams and tablature. Practice routines and over 100 written exercises (with a complete answer key included) help you steadily and pain…

The Giant Pop & Rock Piano Sheet Music Collection: Piano/Vocal/Guitar (Giant Sheet Music Collection) $11.50 For music makers who love pop music, this collection provides unlimited fun! It contains more than 250 pages of piano/vocal/guitar sheet music for 44 familiar favorites. Titles: * Because of You (Kelly Clarkson) * The Big Bang Theory (Main Title Theme) * Billionaire (Travie McCoy) *Bittersweet Symphony (The Verve) * California Gurls (Katy Perry) * Count on Me (Bruno Mars) * Dancing Queen (ABBA) * …

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