Greetings Future, Present, and Past Guitar Players!
I recently got a comment at www.playbluesrockguitar.com about the importance of learning to read standard notation. I would like to emphasize that I believe it is a very important discipline, but it's importance and application to what you are trying to accomplish as a guitar player should be weighed carefully.
I can't tell you how many complete novices to guitar I see trying to work their way through a beginning guitar book or following the advice of a stodgy teacher that is showing them how to read notes and play dinky melodies like "Row, Row, Row Your Boat". If that beginning student decided to pick up guitar so that they could play Blues or Classic Rock, they may just as well throw the guitar in the water and watch it go gently down the stream !
Playing guitar is a daunting task for most people and it is important to reach some early initial milestones to remain interested in playing. For most, learning to play "Smoke on the Water" gives infinitely more satisfaction than being able to read "Ode to Joy" from a chart and pluck it out on a guitar (sorry Beethoven!). I know that you have to learn to crawl before you walk. I just hate to see new students learn to crawl in quicksand. So many of them just end up sinking.
One comment pointed out that few people that start playing without reading music rarely go back and learn how to read. I submit that even fewer that start playing by reading only ever continue to play at all !
My advice ? Don't eschew learning to read standard notation. By the same token, realize that the careers of nearly all of your guitar heroes began by someone getting a guitar and copping licks from friends and records (those weird big flat vinyl things). Learn to read and apply Tab so that you can boldly seek out your favorite licks and songs on the internet and in magazines, thereby launching you more quickly and ever higher into the sublime Stratosphere that is Guitar Playing (O.K., that was a little too dramatic, but you get the idea !). Rock on Brothas and Sistas !
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