Sight Reading, Methods for sight reading Options

[Dulciana]

Duets where you can see the other part are also useful for finding your place when it's all gone wrong, but it can be tempting to cheat by listening rather than counting...

That's not cheating, it's musicianship!

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)
It's also kinda difficult, when you're sight reading a duet for the first time, when you don't know how it goes. to be looking at the other person's part as well as your own; it's a hard enough job to look at your own!

[Arundodonuts]

Duets where you can see the other part are also useful for finding your place when it's all gone wrong, but it can be tempting to cheat by listening rather than counting...

That's not cheating, it's musicianship!

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)
It's also kinda difficult, when you're sight reading a duet for the first time, when you don't know how it goes. to be looking at the other person's part as well as your own; it's a hard enough job to look at your own!

I regularly play duets with my teacher as sight reading exercises, as a way of encouraging me to keep going and get back in when I can (rather than grinding to a halt when I make a mistake). It ought to be possible by looking at your own part providing you have kept count. If you haven't then looking at the other part is the only way back. If both parts are together on one sheet (as they often are for duets, orchestral woodwind parts (e.g. Oboe 1 and 2) and small ensembles) it's not too bad. Mind you I learned how to relate to other parts through choral singing.

Ok sometimes I end up looking like (IMG:style_emoticons/default/ohmy.gif)

[maggiemay]

Yes, I found choral singing was one of the most useful things.

I often play along in 'duet style' with my beginner and elementary pupils when they are sight-reading. Of course they have to get used to going solo in the run up to an exam - but in a more general way it's helpful: because it doesn't need to be a 'proper' duet, it means it isn't dependent on the pupil's level.

[randomsabreur]

Duets where you can see the other part are also useful for finding your place when it's all gone wrong, but it can be tempting to cheat by listening rather than counting...

That's not cheating, it's musicianship!

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)
It's also kinda difficult, when you're sight reading a duet for the first time, when you don't know how it goes. to be looking at the other person's part as well as your own; it's a hard enough job to look at your own!

It's cheating when I'm supposed to be practicing counting! Generally it's easier for me on held notes or rests to have a little spy at the other part that count the beats - being late is usually where I get caught..

[sbhoa]

Duets where you can see the other part are also useful for finding your place when it's all gone wrong, but it can be tempting to cheat by listening rather than counting...

That's not cheating, it's musicianship!

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)
It's also kinda difficult, when you're sight reading a duet for the first time, when you don't know how it goes. to be looking at the other person's part as well as your own; it's a hard enough job to look at your own!

Actually I find it easier if I CAN see the other part (or the piano part in an accompanied piece). Maybe that cones from being a pianist and having sung in a choir.

[oldnotes]

In my music group we sight read something every fortnight when we meet. As a pianist I usually find that I'm the one carrying the 'beat'. I usually also find I have a few 'flashy' bars where I must count. Interestingly, of the two recorder players, one will only have her part and therefore must count whilst the other insists on the full score so that she can check where she is. Our cello player also only has her own part. This arrangement seems to work for us.

[elizabeth21]

I never considered myself to be a very good sight reader but I am much better now as a result of the work I did for my grade 8 exam - this is due to two things:

1. LOADS of practice both in piano and singing - luckily I belong to a choir that sight reads a lot and that is really helpful but I also quite literally use any piano book I can get my hands on. Get used to a "good preparation, play once" approach.

2. I use a kind of formula. One of my students talked about STAR, and I can't remember what she told me it means but I go along the lines of:

- time sig ..... get the beat in my head for a few moments - quite often I do this based on the quickest notes (ie my count might be 1 and 2 and 3 and if there are a lot of dots of quavers ..... rather than 1 2 3)

- Key signature

- performance indications and dynamics - literally a quick scan gets the pattern (like p p F p) out of the way. if you divide the piece up in to sections in your head and relate the dynamics to the sections that can help too.

- Clef - pay attention to any cheeky changes in clef

- and then a very quick scan to see any obvious accidentals during the piece or other features like pauses, trills and play any bits that you think you would like to get a feel for the notes

I believe you can actually cover quite a bit in 30 seconds if you have a systematic way of going about it rather than randomly hopping about all over the piece - so the formula approach worked well for me.

Accept that you will make mistakes and learn not to hover over them and correct them. Also, get more familiar with the off the stave notes - the longer you spend counting the lines during sightreading, the slower your playing will be as you approach them so be able to rattle them off as quickly as possible.


These are just the things that have worked for me.

Elizabeth

[kingsley13]

I was really rubbish at sight-reading until the summer holidays, when I started just sitting at the piano playing through the many books we have. Now I'm just fairly rubbish at it, but there has been an improvement. I think just practising it gets you better at it, because you recognise rhythms, harmonies, scale passages etc.

[nicki_flute]

Not necessarily practical, but playing duets (and I guess, any other ensemble) is useful for forcing you to keep going with sight-reading and is fun too!

This - sometimes you'll amaze yourself, others you'll both collapse into laughter when everything becomes derailed... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Haha...yes!

Brain is frazzled after doing some sight reading of first flute parts in an orchestra tonight...

[maggiemay]

Not necessarily practical, but playing duets (and I guess, any other ensemble) is useful for forcing you to keep going with sight-reading and is fun too!

This - sometimes you'll amaze yourself, others you'll both collapse into laughter when everything becomes derailed... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

Haha...yes!

Brain is frazzled after doing some sight reading of first flute parts in an orchestra tonight...

Mine really must be - I read that as ' Brian is frazzled...' !

[ChristopherO]

Brian? Perhaps, like me, he gets zapped as the notes move across the stave as he tries to play them (IMG:style_emoticons/default/dry.gif)

[maggiemay]

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) know the feeling !

[Paul Moscrop]

Hi, was just browsing through and this is now my first response...

When I first started doing grades for piano, I got the Grade 1 Specimen Sight Reading book, which contains lots of examples for you to practise.

If you don't have books like these, I'd advise that you got on - they're very useful.

Anyway, I would say use the correct fingering, check the key and make sure you look ahead. That's my key tip. Examine the first bar, then move to the second whilst you're still playing the first bar (if you understand what I mean.)

Like many have already said, it takes time.
As long as you know the note names, and where these are positioned on the musical staff then you should get it easily.

[alanchan1024]

Learn as many pieces as possible. Keep eyes on music. Practice "mental play" i.e. imagine the sound away from the instrument.

[aesir22]

Hi, was just browsing through and this is now my first response...

When I first started doing grades for piano, I got the Grade 1 Specimen Sight Reading book, which contains lots of examples for you to practise.

If you don't have books like these, I'd advise that you got on - they're very useful.

Anyway, I would say use the correct fingering, check the key and make sure you look ahead. That's my key tip. Examine the first bar, then move to the second whilst you're still playing the first bar (if you understand what I mean.)

Like many have already said, it takes time.
As long as you know the note names, and where these are positioned on the musical staff then you should get it easily.

Lots of good points but not sure if I agree with the material you suggest. From what I have been told and experienced, using these little captions from the specimen test books won't help as much as using actual scores of music. More opportunity to recognize various aspects in the music I guess. My teacher always says learn from music, test from the specimen book.

Good advice on the looking ahead to the next bar as you play one bar. What pieces are you doing for your grade 3?