if you walk into a session gig and ask for tabs, you're gonna get made fun of
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for starters you may encounter a situation where you play original music that was written down. no tabs there and nobody to make tabs for you...
or imagine you want to play a melody part from another instrument. either learn it by ear or... read it from the sheet that for example the piano player has.
basically it is just much more versatile to read music than to read tabs. more information in it really!! it is like asking: why do i need to read a book with letters when i can watch tv?
More like books vs. hieroglyph.
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Only read the OP, but honestly think it's this simple. 3 reasons:
- 90% of internet tab is wrong
- It keeps people from learning to use their ears.
- It keeps people from learning standard notation, which is much more precise.
Why do you kids always want justification for being too lazy to do the right thing? A kind of vindication from the masses? Tab will never be seen in the recording studio or (reputable) music programs. Tab is a crutch IMO, it has it's merits, but it has even more negatives in relation to improving your total musicality. This argument comes up consistently, and is repeatedly clubbed into the dirt (where it belongs) with minimal effort. Learn tradition, either by ear, by notes etc., or both. In reality, those who can read music, or have a good ear, could care less if you don't see the value. They've got theirs... You're the one that will benefit from the process. Music won't "come" to you, you have to seek it grasshopper... and then you will enjoy the benefits and enrichment of the journey. Reading music saves time and money... If you want to waste "your" time and/or "your" money, then by all means... Start a project finance it, and call whomever you deem fit. But, remember, money is like time...
They both run out...
Good luck,
D.
They both run out...
Good luck,
D.
But that doesn't make it bad, it just makes it limited. Granted most of the user generated tabs on the internet are wrong, and yes that is bad. But if you buy song books that also have tab written in them and prefer to learn that way, then nothing is wrong with that. Should all people who play instruments be able to read notation and chord sheets? probably, but it's not a requirement. As an earlier post said, as long as you understand that tab has limitations and you're not getting the entire story of the song, then it's not bad.
TAB has it's place. In the time it takes to TAB out something you could just write out the notes. If you know where all the notes are on your instrument, why use TAB? TAB is showing the fingering. If you don't know your notes, fine. I personally just write out the notes. I can also read music, although not a great sight reader. I have an excellent ear and have been learning songs by ear and writing down the notes since I started playing back in the early 70's. No TAB for me.
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No snark perceived.
Your point is valid though - there are lots of instruments where you don't need to be explicitly told the manner in which to play something. I think the whole "tab vs. notation" thing is kinda funny given that plenty of orchestral string parts give bowing and occasionally fingering cues.
Nothing wrong with Tabs, but they are guitar only....so not music in the sense of the word.
Whether you are a drummer, a flute player, a percussionist, violin player, piano player, trombone player, you name sheet music Standard notaion applies to you....TAB will only apply to a guitar only
Tab relies on a skills you have already learned, counting.....you know how to count so you can order the numbers in to actions. Reading, you know how to read so you can undersatnd what is being asked of you.
SN is the same, but it askes you to learn a new skill, learn what the symbols used mean.
The strings on TAB, are replaced with staff lines, instead of numbers there are notes.
But each note has a specific job that is rythmical as well as melodic, as well as harmonic, and of course is pitched.
These things can be affect by time sig, key sig, or tempo......all that for one note....so what does the number 3 on the second line of a tab tell us that simply showing C on a Staff cannot?
C on a staff can be written to show many things, where as the number 3 on the TAB line means C and only C.
TAB works because we use all our other skills to read it, we did not learn tab, we learned how to count as kids and used it.
Whether you are a drummer, a flute player, a percussionist, violin player, piano player, trombone player, you name sheet music Standard notaion applies to you....TAB will only apply to a guitar only
Tab relies on a skills you have already learned, counting.....you know how to count so you can order the numbers in to actions. Reading, you know how to read so you can undersatnd what is being asked of you.
SN is the same, but it askes you to learn a new skill, learn what the symbols used mean.
The strings on TAB, are replaced with staff lines, instead of numbers there are notes.
But each note has a specific job that is rythmical as well as melodic, as well as harmonic, and of course is pitched.
These things can be affect by time sig, key sig, or tempo......all that for one note....so what does the number 3 on the second line of a tab tell us that simply showing C on a Staff cannot?
C on a staff can be written to show many things, where as the number 3 on the TAB line means C and only C.
TAB works because we use all our other skills to read it, we did not learn tab, we learned how to count as kids and used it.
If they don't play guitar or bass, then they don't even know what tab is. That includes most arrangers.
There's nothing magical about standard notation, except for two things: 1) It's evolved to cover a large variety of things that can be expressed in written music. 2) If you want your written music to be played, you have to use the notation that people can read.
If you're already reading the rhythms from sheet music why not just learn the notes as well? Music notation is better because it doesn't require you to know how the song is supposed to sound to play it (all the instructions on the notes, rhythms, tempos, dynamics, note articulations are all right there for you) while if you don't know how a song goes and try just learning it from the tabs its an uphill battle.
To be blunt. tab is training wheels. That's not a bad thing, but it's always time for celebration when you take them off. And you find you can go faster and turn harder. It's a win!
Ric5
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Why Is Tablature Bad?
1 - Most tabs are wrong ... either a lot or a little
2 - young players learn to play tabs and have no idea about scales or theory or even what notes they are playing
1 - Most tabs are wrong ... either a lot or a little
2 - young players learn to play tabs and have no idea about scales or theory or even what notes they are playing
This thread comes down to the usual pros vs hobbyists. I use tab sometimes to organize my thoughts learning new songs. I view it as a basic format that I can modify to suit me. Getting handed sheet music? The only thing I ever get handed is some lyrics with chords on top of the words. Jazz or classical music? Not really what I want to play or the scene I hang out in. Session work? That would mean I've just taken a massive pay cut in employment and have bigger problems than sight reading.
In short if you look to music for your income, learn to sight read. Otherwise, you're going to be OK if you don't. Like repair work, it's a handy skill to have, but not required to play the instrument competently enough to play in a band.
In short if you look to music for your income, learn to sight read. Otherwise, you're going to be OK if you don't. Like repair work, it's a handy skill to have, but not required to play the instrument competently enough to play in a band.
I completely agree, with one caveat: I ONLY use tab when trying to learn difficult "signature riffs", e.g. my Real Me example. And then it's mostly to get the right (and usually most effecient) hand position for the riff. Since 1998 I've done that around three times.
Edit: Also, the 21st century has given some nice options. Just as, when building a project at home, I'll use my phone to take pictures of the price tags for all the different wood products I'll be ordering from the lumber store, and then letting the cashier ring up from those pictures, I've found I can use youtube videos to actually watch the original artist in a live setting and SEE them playing the riff I'm questioning.
I think if you play with tabs you must at least know tha basics of reading music. Its a combination. Play with tabs only its impossible to be accurate.
I think that tabs can help because the person has heard the song, so they don't need many timing hints.
I think playing trombone in stage bands in college and high school gave me a huge leg up on many of the "rock musicians" I've played with that were never in any kind of high school band or orchestra. Complicated timing, syncopated rhythms, etc. can be a challenge for many of them. It took me years to realize why they were having a hard time with what I thought came second nature. Same with background vocals.