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Author
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Topic: learning to play/tablature
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Ray Minich
Member From: Limestone, New York, USA
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posted 08 February 2005 12:49 PM
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Tab alone reminds me of learning the Mass in Latin as an Altar Boy in 1st grade. I could recite all of the parts, but had no idea of what I was saying, or how it all fit together.On the other hand, whilst listening to Jim Loessberg's CD of Ray Price Intro's and Steel Breaks at lunch today, after having read this thread, I'm thinking that if I had to depend on sight reading sheet music to pick up the note sequence (chimes, etc...) of "A Way To Survive", I'd probably give up. Does tab convey technique and note-bending methods that sheet music otherwise leaves as an "exercize for the reader"? Can sheet music fully convey all of the style and technique of a particular musician or performance?
How do you show a "hammer on" in sheet music anyway? (Been listening to Ray Price's "Walkin' Slow", awesome work Mr. E!)[This message was edited by Ray Minich on 08 February 2005 at 01:57 PM.] |
W Franco
Member From: silverdale,WA. USA
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posted 08 February 2005 07:54 PM
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I think all single methods have their +'s and -'S. Because I am not good enough to hang with the real jazz guys very good yet, I find myself practing a lot with BIAB. Great because I pick the songs "I" want to play. How ever..the inherent problem is you're always doing solo's unless you make it a point of doing back up. I have been making it a habit to learn the head, then go in preiodically and play nothing but chords. That is really hard for me. I usually feel the frontal lobe of my brain heating up. Especially those 7b9's and minor7-5's that may be closest to the last chord I am playing, not to mention throwing in some II-VI-I's. All this is with the chord chart firmly in front of me. Real players will make me have to do it with out that. Easy for a 3 chord song, hard for a 27 chord song. I really think I get Manic Depressive at times. No I don't, Yes I do, No.......Yes.....Tomorrow I think I will take the approch of printing out about a half dozen songs and analyze the chord progression for appropriate scales over them for the purpose of improvizing. Doesn't that sound like fun![This message was edited by W Franco on 08 February 2005 at 07:57 PM.] |
John Drury
Member From: Gallatin, Tn USA
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posted 10 February 2005 05:54 AM
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Winnie,Although I am a real hack with a steel guitar and know damn good and well I will never really amount to much on one, I do not feel right unless I have a steel set up in the house. I can go a week or so some times and not really have the time to even pull the cover off it but its nice having it there when I do have time. This being the case, if I want to learn something new, 9 times out of ten I need the tab to find out what is going on. I suspect there are many others out there in the same boat as me that do not have the talent and the ear to put stuff together like you pro's. Oh yeah, by the way, if you and Scotty and Jeff and them hadn't taken the time to put together those wonderful books with all that tab I would have been really screwed. That first steel would probably be a friggin table lamp by now! Thanks Man! ------------------
John Drury
NTSGA #3 |
Charles Turpin
Member From: Mexico, Missouri, USA
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posted 12 February 2005 02:06 PM
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Winne thanks to bothe of your books especialy to the manual of steel. It was a great learning tool for me. When you live 400 miles from Nashville and 40 miles from the nearest players, it is very difficult to even learn what a pedal steel guitar was in 1981. When i bought the first copy of your book. I always keep a copy of it in my stack of Tab material. Once a famous steel guitar player and builder told me it is best some time to return to what you learned in the beginning because you never know what you might have forgot. Without tab there isn't any way we could do that. The tab today though helps give not only the beginners a chance it also gives the pros and semi-pros New ideas. It is nice to the things like the steel convention in st louis or a steel convention on Lexington Kentucky. But how many people can actualy sit and watch 30 pro steel guitar players sit and play and remember what they all have played. I use tab as a resource, and also a tool to build my naturaly ability learn new scales new licks. Take a Paul Franklin lick put it somewhere else other than the song it was in. Take a whole break and put it in another song. Tab can actualy increase your imagination once you learn it. You don't need that tab to sit and play everywhere you go. But that tab is a tool, Just like a race car magazine to a shade tree mechanic. You don't need to own the car to work on it. But it is nice to know what the builder built. Just like you dont have to play the lick on that tab just like the player did but it is nice to knwo what he did to. I learned the Flinstones theme from some tab. Hey works good for a part in Orange Blossom Special on a show. But i didn't ahve the tab in front of me when i did it.But if i didn't have that tab i wouldn't ahve ever got that idea. To me tab is very important to a beginner as a tool, Then later on it is still important as kind of a tool to extend your thoughts with the help of the other players. ------------------
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William Steward
Member From: Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands
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posted 13 February 2005 10:24 AM
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I can't help responding to this (very interesting to me) thread. For the past two or three years I have been bombarding myself with every tab, tip, trick, transcription or aid I can acquire to try to learn this instrument(s). The journey has taken me to strange places and introduced me to some wonderful people. I can attest to video instruction being the most effective so far in my 'early' learning curve - maybe most like a live aural lesson. I was lucky enough to have a lesson with Neil Flanz which opened some doors. Now that I am past some of the rudiments, I am starting to dig into tab that has been collecting dust on my shelf to see how Neil, BE, Jerry Wallace and other great players would approach voicing a lick or song passage. If I play something by experimentation and need to remember it I try to tab it out too. I have been trying to think 'musically' even when learning from tab - what scale tone is that and which chord/inversion since learning by 'rote' for me is almost useless. Through all this I have played with a band from Day 1 (literally). The first year must have been very painful for my band. I now realise that tablature will be almost essential to get me past the early learning curve and into more a more intermediate level efficiently - both as a learning and memory tool. The 'musicality' of what I play....well I will experiment or rely on my intuition and 30 years of playing experience. Thanks to everyone who posts tab on the SGF and particularly to Ricky and Jeff (and Graham) for their contributions. |
Bob Doran
Member From: Ames, Iowa, USA
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posted 14 February 2005 02:55 PM
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One of the top 5 banjo players in the world, Harold Streeter, and probably the most unique and improvisional of all banjo players, has kept the largest collection of banjo tab in the world.
It was his opinion that you could always learn something from anyone else!
For myself I could never have learned any instrument without the aid of tablature.
If you don't have the talent it is the only way.
Finally after decades of study, I have slowly awakened to the fact that one can experiment, and even make a mistake or two, without getting kicked out of the band (as long as you don't also lose the beat!)
BOb |
Richard Gonzales
Member From: FITCHBURG,MA USA
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posted 14 February 2005 04:29 PM
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I have to say that some of the better TAB belongs to Doug Beaumier. Easy to read, has chords listed and notes above the TAB which really helps for the right beats and for learning notes on the guitar. After reviewing a lot of other teachers TAB it is my opinion his is tops! Thanks Doug! |
kevin ryan
Member From:
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posted 16 February 2005 03:22 PM
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Boy...a great thread! I have mixed opinions about tab and its effectiveness in understanding our instrument (a shortcut). I've just finished producing JayDees new 2 hour video with tab and as a tabber, I learned a ton. All that I can really say is "thank God for Winnie Winstons Steel Guitar Anthology and your Styles book" It was and is still hugely helpful...thanks Winnie for your continued contribution to the instrument!! |
Fred Rushing
Member From: Odin, IL, USA
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posted 16 February 2005 06:55 PM
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This is very interesting to say the least. My two cents worth. I learned to play pedal steel (E9) and have used tab all the way. I never played any other instrument or even sung a song before I started learning the pedal steel. I was 30 yrs old and am now 61. I wanted to play the EXACT LICKS ARRANGMENTS I heard my idols play. BE LG LS TB JH JC DJ and others. Tabbed allowed me to do that. Jeff came along as did others including Winnie (2) books> What all that tab taught me was where to find all these scales and chord progressions and so on. You cannot spennd bad money with jeffran. He cover all the bases and he can make a player out you if you are willing make the COMMITTMENT. BE has wonderful material out there as do many many others. Spend as much time practicing as we do talking about it and good things will happen. Spend as much money on instruction as you do your equiptment and good things will happen. Most of all know that there is an unlimited supply of teaching out there if you want to get and Apply it. Just understand it all takes time and committment. If I can do it ANYONE can. Remember. More practice and less talk will make aplayer out of all of us. I outta here and thanks. Fred Rushing Odin, IL |
Kiyoshi Osawa
Member From: Mexico City, Mexico
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posted 07 March 2005 01:52 PM
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"You're born with a spark... to search for the truth, for the best you can be. Practice, Discipline, Preparation. Try and try again. Then one day you're on top and they say you're an 'overnight success', a 'natural'. You smile, you know"- anonymous from Aebersold's "how to improvize and play Jazz" ------------------
Kiyoshi
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Larry Bell
Member From: Englewood, Florida
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posted 07 March 2005 04:31 PM
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quote:
Master your instrument. Master the music. Then forget all that $hi* and just play.
--Charlie Parker--
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Larry Bell - email: larry@larrybell.org - gigs - Home Page
2003 Fessenden S/D-12 8x8, 1969 Emmons S-12 6x6, 1971 Dobro, Standel and Peavey Amps |
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