How to read Music? (+rep!)

[.x.miss.angel.x]

So, im thinking about starting singing lessons, only problem. I have never been able to read music! Anybody explain to me or help me learn? (like saying or whatever) Since if i also learnt how to read music I could play my Keyboard better aswell Thanks!

[Triz]

It's like learning a new language, however not as complex.. It just takes a little time and dedication.. There are some online websites that can help you in your basic introduction to reading music such as:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNqQqvT43yo

[RockyHorror]

I would suggest, going through a tutorial online but if you start singing lessons, and you need to learn to read music then I'm sure they will teach it too you, because they won't expect every pupil they teach to know how to read music.

If you want a basic understanding, here is a tutorial I just did a quick search for;

http://library.thinkquest.org/13734/lesson/lesson1.html

[scott]

Do you get the chance to do music at school? If so then that's a great place to start trying to learn it as you will be in a class with others who are learning as well and it's free! Like others have said as well if you look at some guides and tutorials online then that can help but it's really not something that you can pick up straight away it will take a lot of time and work to be very good at it. Good luck and stick at it if you do start to learn

[.x.miss.angel.x]

The website & the Video really helped And the school we go to is a Preforming Arts so we have learnt music but not the basics (Art academy fail) But i may do my lessons there so it should be ok

[Conservative,]

Check out the guides others have posted ^^^ but for singing it's a little different, because it depends on what voice you have as to what cleff you will be using.

But your singing teacher should not expect you to know it - I'm fortunate, I started learning music at a young age and could read it fluently by year 3, so when I started singing it wasn't a problem. But to be honest, for singing you don't really need to be able to read it other than for sight reading if you do grades.

One tip though, once you learnt it keep practicing it and reading it, I switched from classical to electric guitar in year 7 and started using a different form of music notation and had to re-learn everything for some music exams in year 8 because I didn't practice it.

[Eoin247]

To learn its initially is fairly easy. It shouldn't take you more than a week or two if you practise a bit (depends how many octaves/clefs you want to learn). After that just practise continually and soon enough you'll be able to read it as easily as an english book. The harder part is getting to read it fluently without having to think about it.

For singing you don't need to utilise it as much as you would if you were playing an instrument (Since most people can remember and then sing the notes of a song after hearing it a few times). Still, it's always a great thing to learn.

[grain]

There are different types of music for different type of instruments,
For instance guitar music will look like they have the same notes (crochets, minums, semi-quavers ect) as clarinet music but they are different notes played in different ways.
So if you learn piano music don't go try read flute music for instance,
but learning music is really easy though you usually don't need it for singing,
if you get a teacher/book/video tutorial you will be able to pick it up within days.

[AgnesIO]

There are different types of music for different type of instruments,
For instance guitar music will look like they have the same notes (crochets, minums, semi-quavers ect) as clarinet music but they are different notes played in different ways.
So if you learn piano music don't go try read flute music for instance,
but learning music is really easy though you usually don't need it for singing,
if you get a teacher/book/video tutorial you will be able to pick it up within days.

Are you trying to say the flut doesn't use quavers, crotchets etc? If so, errrrr what?

[grain]

Are you trying to say the flut doesn't use quavers, crotchets etc? If so, errrrr what?

No,
When you read music there are lines.
The music notes are placed on these lines.
Different lines mean different parts on the instruments, so for guitar music they'd be strings ect.
So if you put quavers on for instance the top line, they'd be E in guitar music or D in clarinet or whatever.