How important is Reading Music?
Вставка
- Опубліковано 15 тра 2024
- 0:00 Start
0:41 Almost all of the greats read
1:17 Very helpful to learn complex patterns faster.
2:30 Visualization of patterns, placements, orchestrations
2:56 Communicating with other musicians effectively
4:24 Concept access
5:06 A wealth of knowledge stored in books
6:47 I don’t sight read anymore
7:16 A new era
8:24 What else does it do?
10:02 It helps remember figures
10:56 Categorizing helps augment patterns.
12:05 DAW proficiency increases
14:39 Bar gig cheat sheets
15:48 Memory aid that economizes time
16:46 Don’t be lazy
17:31 Keep a book of ideas
19:20 Books I’ve gone through
What has reading done for you?
matt-garstka.myshopify.com
"I'm gonna try to get through this quickly because the first video I made was 19-minutes long."
Lol.
I kept thinking of things that would be helpful to add lol I can't help myself
@@drummusician fair enough, all of it is useful as heck anyway so it's all good
@@drummusician the longer the better. Thank you Matt
@@dr.umkit.444u I’m so happy that Matt has recently become more active on UA-cam, and these long videos are awesome.
@@drummusician For us hardcore fans, those are very awesome videos. The longer the better indeed.
My favorite quote from Matt at drumeo.. "LEARN TO READ!!"
Which video?
@@petarpavasovic6333 ua-cam.com/video/gbh7Up_Q4YU/v-deo.html
28:24
Says there's 2 replies here but I'm only seeing one... Wtf?
Edit: Well now it says three haha. I can count..
@@HauntaskhanHYPNOSIS why did you comment this?
Inspiring stuff, Matt. I love when you just explain your thinking. Always so clear and logical.
Sight reading is just really good for ur brain
I feel like learning to read/write music is like learning to read Chinese characters. There's a time investment and learning curve, but definitely pays off because of the huge amount information you get recieve visually
Dude I remember having a Skype lesson with you years ago. It was incredibly helpful for my drumming back then. These new instructional videos for the masses are a gift. You can tell you genuinely want to help and don't hold back the info. It's great.
Thank you Matt.
lucky fucker
It's so important. BUT I've had tonnes of students who rely on their books and never listen to music and try to work things out by ear. Both are essential skills for any musician.
Wise words! its crazy that most people watch matt destroying on live shows and think how gifted he is, but i think that matt beyond gifted he embraced the hard work that transformed him in such a insane drummer. When i was younger i played much drums here on Brazil, learning all those metalcore breakdowns and even manage to learn a few songs from animal as leaders, but life and depression took me down, i stopped to play drums, and my life now its just study and work, and i feel such a big regret and sadness because i know that if i believed more i could be a good drummer. I even managed to learn monomyth by ear, but i feel just to embaraced to try anything. So when i watch an young drummer here on youtube doing great i just tell them to dont give up and keep climbing.
Some pretty amazing musicians did not know how to read but i believe it is a huge plus to be able to read speeds up learning new patterns
Thanks for posting these dude! Always informative
I dont think reading music is "necessary" but it provides so many tools that allow a variety that just imo wouldn't be possible (or at least worth the effort) without being able to read
big professional gigs and projects might require that skill.
I'm really loving these talks Matt, thanks a lot!
Reading improved and widened my vocabulary.
This is huge. Thanks man, your awesome.
Thanks Matt I needed this ⚡️🪐
THANK YOU, GREAT INFO FOR MUSICIANS
This is Huge. Thank you.
Digging this video format / series
Agree wholeheartedly, thank you for saying it. Love these discussions Matt is doing.
Thank you Matt ❤.Always an inspiration.Thanks for sharing
very helpfull insight Matt . Thank you
really makes you realize how there is still to learn, thanks!
These videos answering common questions in depth are so useful, thank you so much man. You owe us nothing and already provide such entertainment and inspiration through your playing with AAL, then you help the pursuit of drumming with these videos on top. Class act, we appreciate it.
Ayee really appreciated the advice matt and glad your uploading more😁🤙. Definitely good vibes and glad to hear your words of wisdom 🤙💯 .
Grande Matt!! Glad you're spreading the word. Keep it coming. These kids need it!
I didn't skip a second of this. Thank you so much for your knowledge!!
I'm getting hyped on these set up changes dude 👀
Matt! These videos are absolute fire and super valuable. Thanks for taking the time to make them and please continue posting!! If anyone is on the fence about getting one of his courses, do it. I can't recommend them enough.
Thanks Matt for mentioning Bobby and my book. Glad it helped you. It's always a pleasure to hear your playing. Happy Holidays to you and family. Best Always!
YES!, inspiring and very accurate to real world.
so glad to hear someone say this! read to internalize what you're doing.
How are these fantastic videos free??? Long time fan here and my respect for you just skyrocketed even more!!
“It’s the exception to the rule, not the rule”
I love this, people will always have some name to drop as an excuse to not learn theory, or how to read, or even doing things outside of music (like “oh this person never went to college”) and it’s like, if you wanna say that stuff fine, but it’s hardly an argument
I always go back to JP learning a whole Periphery setlist AND AAL. Reading and writing the parts was the reason why he was able to play that stuff that quickly.
Love the vids Matt, keep them coming.
"well then fine, don't learn to read. just be happy playing beats in your basement. you could probably be a bar-band drummer and make a fine living not knowing how to read." not to look down on anyone who can't/doesn't read, but very true.
alot of bigger professional gigs and projects will probably want you to have that knowledge, or at least some great proficiency in it to communicate. it's like that with music in general, or with any art. like someone who is a good 'cook' and who has maybe read up on some things to do the culinary-alchemy vs. a fully trained culinary chef.
i think alot of the time what makes ppl not really see a fine line between professionalism and amateur with any arts is that some of them are universal skills or arts that almost everyone in the world experiences daily/identifies with or is aware of; music and culinary activities are definitely two major ones.
Right on Matt! A big plus for Kim Plainfield. Such a great player so nderrated.
Totally agree with you.... we discuss this often.
Probably the single best piece of advice you've given yet. It forces me to look at drumming like I need to: if I plan on getting anywhere near the next level, it's going to involve learning to read. A person can hobby drum for all it's worth but if a person really does ever plan on doing this in the professional realm, it is imperative to know how to speak the language.
Thank you for making this video. I am starting to learn to read music, and I'm still in awe that anyone can do this lol. I have learned all the concepts you would learn from sheet music from piano roll/MIDI, and even before I used that stuff I can conceptualize quintuplets and septuplets. It would be a great help to learn sheet music though.
Man I've been in a huge slump until recently revisited reading, starting with Ted Reeds Syncopation and it's kicking my ass. The visualisation section is absolutely true, I can hear myself 'sing' the phrase in my head and then play it which has made things easier overall. Another great video, need to check out some other books you recommend once I've mastered syncopation :')
I cosign everything Matt says (not that he needs it). I was at my best chops-wise and on the kit when I was teaching marching band. Having to be able to read everything I wrote plus transcribe it and water it down for students trains your brain on another level.
Books were the main thing that made my progress living in a small town with no good teachers and limited learning opportunities. That and the Internet, watching early Vic Firth videos with Dom Famularo explaining the free stroke and Moeller. Thank you Intenet and thank you Matt for pointing out how reading is so important when learning an instrument.
I love these videos so much
I agree! I view reading music as a way to learn songs, parts etc. and visualising things. That way, I don‘t just hit things and hope to land on the 1 of the next measure but actually think in patterns and subdivisions. Also, it really allows you to learn from better drummers. By transcribing their stuff, you learn so mich more than just listening to their stuff.
Thank you sensei
Bro 🙏🙏🙏 tank ya , much love ✊
sabias palabras y muy solidario tu parte, gracias!
Programming drums in logic and looking at the transcribe has massively helped me (subconsciously) learn to read, still couldn't sight read with a band, but I can wing my way through if I had too 😅
From what I understood, for me I think it's like having "cheat codes" that makes your life easier when playing.. this is an advantage of writing/reading AAL stuff and other complex playing that Matt plays OR the ideas, concepts, patterns that we might have in mind. With this, we can remember random ideas easily you know.. especially when you're not with your respective instrument.
Thank you, Matt! Love from the Philippines! ❤🇵🇭🔥😁🤙
thanks Matt.. me and my drummer buddies studying percussion and drum have always looked up to you.. we even have our own code to when we play in a band or jamming with songs.. Like, "i want this part, the Matt G. style on the drum".. "Bro. Matt G bro, Matt G..." "say no more"... hahha, we're not a pro, but person like you helped us a lot in what we love to do..
Having grown up not reading as a drummer, reading/transcribing rhythms now is super duper helpful to learn complicated ideas or concepts in music or by drummers you hear. Fills and sophisticated patterns are the most applicable for them, as it really helps you deconstruct the patterns and put them to paper without trying so hard to memorize. If it’s demanding on your brain to try and deconstruct a rhythm, forget about trying to memorize it and integrating it more effectively into your playing. This is another scenario where ‘perfect practice makes perfect’ is super applicable.
When transcribing, my biggest workaround for lack of better note value knowledge is to basically setup rows of staffs and fill the bars with 32nd notes (or whichever note value is most suitable for whatever you’re transcribing) without any line specific symbols: like a bunch of noteless sticks on the staff. So a 4/4 bar of 32nds would have… 32 notes, split into 4 groups for differentiation. Then I listen to the music and carefully fill in the beats where they land, leave out where there are no beats, while counting in my head to those note values. You build up speed over time!
I’ve tried to learn to read, and I can read my basics, or foundations. I’m better by ear. I want and need to learn how to read music though, because you’re right, exceptionally it’s an aid, very beneficial for the musician in the end to collaborate with other musicians.
the visualizing of patterns when improvising is huge for me. What I need to do more of is take a pattern I like and then write out various displacements of it. I guess Steve Gadd's new book is exactly this, displaced rudiment stuff
I think the first step in learning is listerning. And he talks alot thats a bonus. Keep doing the good work Matt. 👍
I’ve indirectly taught myself to read a bit. Been working through stick control and syncopation, and most of the reading is fairly basic. What is nice about drums is reading a lot more lenient since we aren’t playing an actual pitched instrument. For a phrase where a guitarist would not be able to sub out a note we can change the drum or cymbal we hit to make that phrase more interesting and it still function on a structural level.
Me inspiro na sua musicalidade e habilidade! 🇧🇷
Been studying almost pure Dawson style out of John Ramsay's book with John Ramsay for like the last 2.5 years. Way more than just the ritual in there. All the Ted Reed stuff you mentioned is from Dawson (and catalogued in the book). Single stroke roll development that doubles as a method to go through Stick Control. Singing a jazz standard to learn common song forms while alternating between comping (then soloing), and playing Stick Control passages hand to foot. Different journeys for everyone (and obviously yours has taken you farther than most), but it makes me sad to see Alan's method only highlighted for the ritual. Still love the video and your playing.
Long term gains 💪🏽 👌🏽🥁🎶
I definitely believe reading music is essential to progressing in your career. Because with reading you can understand down to the semiquaver rest. If you don't read the music to things, you can miss small details! I read your transcripts for some Joy of Motion and instantly understood what you were playing.
Reading is important, But Soultone endorsements are Importanter
lol
I've been playing drums for like 25 years maybe more, I like to use graph paper to transcribe Meshuggah tracks I'm trying to learn and it helps to visualize what certain patterns look like. Also yeah the computer software for making/transcribing music is great too. Being able to read music in some form is super important in my opinion.
Hi Matt,
love your playing! I have to respectfully disagree with a few things which I feel are extremely important to point out. "You don't see guys playing quintuplets and septuplets that don't read" To list 1 example, in Indian classical music that happens all the time, on purpose, without notation. Those things can be memorized and/or improvised but don't need to be learned or conceptualized with the aid of notation or at least not in "western musical notation." There are other traditions do this also, which I hope someone can fill us in with some examples. In fact, most of the music around the world (in the past and today) has always been created/memorized/performed without reading music. To be clear, I'm commenting to elevate the conversation not to be disrespectful.
I appreciate your contribution to the conversation. Unfortunately many drum set players in the west(especially younger ones)do not listen to Indian music. So the likelihood of them hearing and playing by osmosis is slim. Almost all mainstream western music in 8ths,trios and 16ths, so we don’t have many places to learn these Quinn’s and septs. They are however very prevalent in formal teaching situations. Almost all my advanced teachers were aware and taught these. Mostly using notation. May I also point out, I had an Senegalese friend who played groups of 4 in quintuplets and he cannot read music. So it is certainly possible, but these statements are not based on absolutes, or exceptions to the rule, they are based on what is most common. India is the exception in that they have many complex patterns inherent in their music.
@@drummusician Well put! I kind of figured you knew what was up.
True I agree to this too, splitting time is just that - splitting time. It's not about reading. But like some tests say, more sensory inputs can help the brain learn faster. So learning it in audio + visual at the same time helps. And this I guess is why Matt feels about reading aside from what he has mentioned.
Matt, you're the best drummer in the world for me❤️love you~when New animals as leaders album?))
So... Asking a Berklee alumni if reading music... Interesting and not surprising at all!
This is not a diss! This is just an observation of the most expected answer ever, even given the man's laborious pieces of music in AAL
I have like a 5th grade reading level when it comes to reading… wish I had a drum teacher when I was younger. Grew up in a small town and had to self teach myself. Was in marching band and jazz band to help, but still wasn’t much. Been playing for almost 20 years and all I want to do is read better.
Read and ear, both are important!!!
It's crazy how often the existence of amazing non-clasically trained musicians is so often used as an excuse to avoid learning to read and/or theory.
Important👍👍👌
Great video, Matt! I think another good reason for learning to read is - why not? Why not just learn? What is the detractor to reading? When is not knowing something ever preferable? Honestly, for drum set, it’s not that complex; especially if you just want to master simple duplet and triplet reading and rhythm concepts. Compared to most other instruments - I would argue drum set has a pretty limited written form (again - for simple drums). That’s good news! The written component is much more accessible to beginners than almost any other harmonic instrument, for example. Hence it’s great to learn to read from day 1. A lot of folk like to dichotomise reading/“playing by feel”… as if to say you have “better feel” if you don’t read and just listen. Any of you ever hear this talking point? Pretty deluded! As Matt stated - you can visualise things much better and be more flexible with your compositions/ideas, along with dozens of other bonuses.
LEARN IT ALL! The more you know, the more you can do!
Thx man
Stick Control an absolute must and a classic.
The book that I'm currently digging is Aaron Edgar's Prod Drumming Essentials
Some nerdy stuff in there for sure
Also, if that is the Michael Lauren that I'm thinking about, then he is a drummer/teacher here in Portugal. I believe he's american, but he's living and teaching here, for some reason. My percussion teacher was his student at some point, and he hated it.
Not sure if he still teaches or if he's retired at this point, but rumors have it that he was the man who inspired the ferocious and feared character, Terrence Fletcher, in the movie Whiplash (2014). Bald, always wearing black from head to toes and a tough son of a gun to deal with.
Didn't know he was featured in a book about double bass drumming.
"books. There's so much knowledge inside of books" preach bro
The 2 most important words in this vid: "good repetitions".
the way i was interpreting this at first i thought you meant we all have to be able to sight-read. that sounded a bit crazy to me but yea being able to read is important
I wrote my first transcript when I was 13. I've been playing since I was 4. I had 2 years of lessons and messed with reading here and there afterwards. I should of tried to read more than i even did. I messed with a few books including The 4-way coordination book and a few other beginner books, one of them being rudimental. Now that I'm older, I feel guilty I didn't continue to try and really get to the level I feel like I could still achieve.
Why not just pick up where you left off, travel back down that path you were once on, the path of discovery!
@@drummusician I'm trying! Lol! I still play more than I ever did since I bought my own home where I could actually build a nice studio in!
Bro Matt, i actually wrote and added my first transcript in one of my videos just to see how it'd turn out and I love doing it! I've already written my third one! I kept seeing them on youtube, so I finally decided to try and download software to try and do them myself which Im so glad i did! It's like a whole new world! The first one was just a short video and was a basic pattern, but this next one im doing has a few accents and a ghost note. It's still 4/4 but has a cool lil feel to it! This is going to be my best video yet! Sound wise and also playing wise! I still have to edit it and add a thumbnail, but it's coming!! I knew I could do better with my drums/ drum vids and still progress. I'm now trying to organize my time to play more drums! Even with a new baby girl in my life! ❤ Thanks for your feedback and also your inspiration!
There is a guy that did a guitar cover of micro-aggressions and had the notation and tab and the notation was a lot easier to follow than tabs. So I need to re-learn how to read music.
AKA 1:17 I feel it.
"To me, reading is very important" Joseph Seed has spoken
interested actually bc Ive never been taught to read
I think reading and writing down music gives you a lot more than people who can’t
You should do a podcast, maybe a little longer episodes? That’d be cool.
It’s important because it helps you understand the concept of gridding your playing. Also, reading on drums is so much easier than other instruments because it’s literally just patterns vs having to memorize a million notes on a pitch instrument, there’s really no excuse.
Hearing you talk about new breed makes me want to ask you:
do you think that it’s ok to skip some of the strange systems that you would probably never play in a real music situation?
I’ve been going through the book recently and while I’ve gotten a lot out of it, I think I might just skip the systems that I feel are irrelevant or useless.
Fucking love this, man.
Hi Matt, do you experience the afternoon slump (getting sleepy in the early to late afternoon)? What do you do to fend it off? I experience it daily and done things like daily exercise, sun, good diet, enough sleep, etc. But I still get it. And it gets in the way of the quality of my practice during that time
Reading music is great. I can barely read music. I personally think it depends on what you want to do. Reading music has its place. I could say more but I'll just leave it at that for now.
Hey Matt, I would love to hear what your thoughts are on Self-Care, taking breaks from practicing or if you ever had the need to step away from work completely.
I was surprised to not see the Gary Chaffee books in here, since those concepts seem to really mesh with your playing. have you gone through those?
I feel like a lot of the gospel cats don't read but they are way tighter and technically proficient than the rest of us mere mortals busting our asses with the super challenging method books.
It's weird for me as the only one in my band that can read/write music. They all are excellent musicians and almost never forget what we're practicing whereas I have to go home and write it all down or I'll completely forget small details by the next day. It's weird, lol.
You sir can properly rock a Man Bun
I understand the words but, making the sentences seems to have been a task over the 30+ yrs my alter ego Marcel Lightning Dube has been performing. There's a new style; not sure how the notation would work out when switching limbs constantly to the drumming of the song. Although your ideas in drumming is completely off the hook especially w/ Red Miso that I recently saw!! Well done!!
UNIQUE
"How important is learning to read sheet music?"
Virgin prog drummer: [31:09]
Chad punk drummer: *it's not*
In the amount of time most people spent watching this video, you could've spent 30 minutes watching a video on how to read music and probably got most of it. Think about it.
Human beings solved this question like 10,000 years ago: "Is it better to be literate?"
Yes.
Reading has saved me due to my poor memory.
I love you brother
You should fast track your transition back into Ableton 💪🏼
Nice shirt
I never understood how this is even an argument. If you take your craft seriously, you'll probably learn to read music. It's not that hard people.