Where Should Your Eyes be Looking When Sight Reading?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 31 ธ.ค. 2017
- First Video of the Year!
I do know that reading music in this way will not be accessible (yet!) to those who have not played music/ their instrument for a few years. There is a certain degree of fluency with reading music and playing your instrument that is required before you can get to this stage. I will be posting more videos about sight reading that address the basic in the future so hang tight!
When your fluency with music and reading improves, musicians don't actually read every single note. Instead, we've had enough experience that we can make assumptions of what the notes are.
It is like when you read the word "CAT". You don't see it as C-A-T, then process it as the entire word "CAT", and then all the ideas of a "CAT" rush into your head.
Instead you just see the word and all the associations you have to "CAT" is understood in an instant.
As a musician, instead of reading the notes C moving to G, we simply read it as a "fifth" and our body and ear responds accordingly. If we see the notes G-C-E stacked as a chord, we see it as a particular hand shape, chord, harmonic function, a particular sound in the inner ear, and our body responds accordingly..... but more details on this in another video.
I hope this video helps you at some point in your musical journey. I had gotten to a point in sight reading where I would hit a wall; I couldn't take in enough information fast enough to keep up with the demands of the music while I was sight reading. I was often told to simply just "look ahead" and to "read in chunks" but I was never given a method to actually develop this. I felt like I was just blindly trying to look ahead, So it wasn't until I found Pascal La Corre's method book "La Magie du Dechiffrage" that I discovered the door to reading better and learning to look ahead. This underrated book has honestly changed the way I approach reading music and has affected many other aspects of music such a learning faster. Thus, I really wanted to share this information with everyone. (Link below for Method book).
He's created many sight reading method books that are not limited to just pianists; There are some for Vocalists and instrumentalists as well. However, I have only been able to find this book being published in French so if anyone knows of it's translated version, Let me know!!
Happy Practicing,
Michelle
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I take piano lessons (currently at ABRSM Grade 4) and I'm saying THIS is honestly the best sight-reading advice I've ever got. My teacher has never told me how to actually sight-read, he only goes as far as saying, "The only way to know how to read is to read. You'll get better with time and experience." It's the first time I've been exposed to such precise detail on how to actually move my eyes on the score while reading.
Great examples you made in the video, very intuitive and illuminating!
Before studying this video, I used to try reading vertically instead of horizontally across, which heavily discouraged me and made me scared of even attempting to read slowly. Knowing pitch names and intervals is one thing but THIS method is the best. I think I'll enjoy sight-reading now. 😉 Thank you and God bless you! ❤️
I’m so glad this video has helped you and given you deeper insight! You sound so motivated and empowered to improve your sight reading! All the best and Happy Practicing~!
Helpful,beautiful video(and person) Thank you ♪
I'm a dancer and I found your materials as a great insights. I hope to see more of your content!
Good lesson!
I saw this video a long time ago, but i want to thank you very much, because this helped me a lot to solve a lot of problems with sight-reading and therefore, helped me improve a lot since then.
There is no video which explains how to sight-read as well as this video does. Most advice seems to be vague and not very clear unlike this video which analyzes in depth the process of sight-reading.
Thank you so much for writing and your encouraging words! It warms my heart that this video was able to help someone improve and make them feel more confident with their skills!
Helpful video thank you. Sight reading is an awesome skill.
many thanks for that - the detailed analysis of points of focus on the actual score, amidst the many notes and signs, was really very interesting to see, and it answered questions I have asked of myself in deciding how to best guide my eye movements. I subscribed.
very helfpul! I've notied this phenomenon, and thought i was just being more focused, but turns out it's a skill. Just like any skill, it's gonna take a lot of time to "master".
Thank you for your smart videos and good approach to music.
Thank you for watching and for your kind words! :)
this was really helpful, thanks
Glad it was helpful! Thank you for watching!
Happy New year:)
shingose music art project Happy New Year!
I really like how clearly you explained the association between how we read text and how we read music. Thanks for making this video, I'll share it with my students! 😀
Thank you! Happy Practicing :)
Best new year surprise ever!!
jay Thank You for Watching! Wishing you all the success in this 2018 year! 🎉
Thanks and you too!!! And keep posting and have a great year ahead
Thank you, I found your explanations really helpful. I wish I read French so I could read that book!
Thank you for your kind comment! Wishing you all the best!
really nice and informative.. thank you and good luck :))
Thank you!
excellent video - thank you!
Thanks for watching!
Hi Peter, this is so funny - I keep finding that we are watching the same videos! Good luck with your reading!
Kathryn is Learning to SIGHT READ hi Kathryn! haha great minds think alike! Thank you and good luck as well :)
This is so helpful. Now I don't freeze and internally panic as much as I read pieces. I play guitar btw.
That's awesome. It's nice to hear that you're already experiencing improvement. Happy Practicing!
I’m very much a competent pianist myself to be honest. I’m comfortable with Chopin, Liszt, Rachmaninov, and just about anything around Henle 8. My biggest problem is sight reading though, specifically when there are different key signatures involved. Anything that has more than two natural black keys is enough to give me a headache.
I’m so glad I found your video! Vision is something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately when it comes to sight reading. Proficient sight readers I have talked to say that they keep their fixation point between the staffs and can still read notes above and below. When I make my fixation point there I feel like I have trouble making out notes above and below to the extent where it’s hard to make out those patterns and chunk information. I often wish the space between bass and treble clef were squeezed together more because of this, because recognizable notes seem just out of my field of vision (I know that notes are there, but will have trouble telling you what they are).
In case you were wondering, when I’m at the eye doctor my vision is 20/20, because what I focus on I can see clearly. I can also detect movement in my peripheral vision though the image is fuzzy.
What do you think about this? You think it’s possible that some musicians are able to process more notes when sightreading because their field of vision is “wider” so to speak? I’ll often get frustrated with sightreading because of this, since I feel like I have to go back and forth between staffs to recognize notes/chunks/patterns.
One's peripheral vision will always be slightly blurry. It's just the way our eyes work - the center of our vision is clearest (aside from a blind spot) and the edges will be a bit blurry.
With more experience and practice, you'll be able to "make out" or predict what is in the farther reaches of the staff. I'll make another video that is more in depth about the building blocks to sightreading (one day haha) that will touch upon what other skills are necessary. This is my short answer.
For the long answer.....
I don't think that musician necessary have a wider field of vision - everyone is human after all. We have just practice and experienced enough that other field of awareness is wider and able to carry more information. The harder you try to focus on a fixation point, the more your brain will get a sort of "tunnel vision". You want to be able to keep your eyes on a page somewhere, but have a light sense of focus upon that fixation. In a way, it's like having a gentle gaze and a wide field of awareness.
There are ways to "widen" your vision so to speak. Part of it also has to do with /how/ you think about using your vision and your mindset about the concept
of "focus".
One of the most basics to training your peripheral vision is to deliberately operate in a field of vision and awareness that is greater than is needed.
Try this:
As I touched upon at the beginning of the video about awareness and vision, experiment with this exercise.
Set your music up on your stand and then place an object on either side of your music. It would be best to use visually unique objects like a flickering candle, an orange, a colourful scarf etc. Begin with placing these objects next to your music. If you also want to work on maintaining the keyboard at the edges of your vision, place an object on the keys.
Now practice sight reading while keeping the objects in your vision field of awareness. The key is "field of awareness" What I mean is that you should still be able to keep the objects in your field of view and still be aware of them despite reading the music. You will know when your field of awareness begins to shrink because you will forget about the objects; it's as if your brain creates it sort of visual and mental "tunnel vision".
As you get better at maintaining a wider field of awareness, set the objects farther and farther away from the music to make this exercise harder.
Don't beat yourself up if keep losing your awareness and vision on those objects. You just bring your mind back to them. At the end of the day, you're basically stretching your ability to maintain and operate with a greater and wider field of focus.
There is this awesome sight reading book (La Magie du déchiffrage by Pascal La Corre) but I think it's only available in it's original language- French; I think it's a must read for all musicians. See the description for a link to it (not sponsored, just want to spread this gem of a book).
If you can get your hands on it (and a translator if French is not your forte) then I would give a read through. Much of the concepts in this video was based upon the ones in the book.
Hope this helps! Happy music making!
Michelle
@@theOpenScore This is really helpful, thank you so much! I'll do the vision awareness exercise when I practice and go about my day. It makes sense, and it sounds like with intentional training the brain will learn to adapt and absorb more input for its default, which will make sight reading easier!
It's funny because growing up I hated sight-reading because it was hard, and I was an accurate reader with a good ear and quick kinesthetic learner so I just wanted to focus on learning pieces and so that's what I've always done. I decided against majoring in piano but still practiced like I did, and now that I'm older and I see really good sight readers who are able to accompany a million people and learn advanced repertoire faster than I can I'm like, oh snap, so that's why you should practice sight-reading. Why haven't I done this all along and why didn't someone explain this to me years ago????
Thus I'm drinking from the bitter cup of consequences for being the pianist and musician equivalent of a "picky eater." And you're video is helping me understand that no, I'm not broken, I'm just unpracticed. lolol
Unfortunately I don't know any French beyond what you find in a Ravel piece but I'm sure I can find a pianist who can and whom I can pay to read it and discuss it with me! Thanks for suggesting it!
I'll keep my eye out for more of your videos!
Michael
@@parlorwallenthusiast3637 Thank you for sharing your story. I'm sure many people can relate to it and be inspired by it. If you find another pianist/musician who you can help you, I'd also team up with them and practice sight-reading through duets and chamber works.. Nothing makes you a a better Sight-reader as quickly as playing with other people. It's more fun too ;) You'll quickly learn how to reduce and "fake it" on the fly.
Happy Practicing!!!!~
@@theOpenScore That's also a great idea, I'm sure I can find someone in town to do that with! Thank you! :)
Im 14 years old and I feel your pain I've been playing piano for about 2 years and this video actually said what I thought sight reading was on how you supposed to keep your eyes in the middle of staff that is how I always thought it would be done but when I try and my field of vision would not let me reach those notes clearly
hi... how many time do I have to read the piece? just once and move on? or do I have to play it until it sounds fluent?
Ok but how to read ahead while you're still deciphering the current bar ?
Hi Michelle,
I found out that your channel is very helpful especially with my music major study.
What I would like to ask in this context is, Does it work with any modern composers? like Schönberg , prokofiev, Ravel, Messian, or Scriabin.
Would really appreciate for the feedback.
Kind regards,
Carolin
Hi Carolin,
Thank you for your kind words! Please share this video (or other of my videos) to help out others in your music department! :)
The General principles I covered in here like chunking/grouping information, looking ahead, recognizing patterns, etc work for any music reading (or reading in general).
Some skills that would aid in your sight reading for modern works would be aspects like your technique, your familiarity with the composer's language, your ability to read directionally/intervallically, your ability to audiate etc. Maybe a video on this on this in the future.....
Hope this helped,
Michelle
theOpenScore
Hi Michelle,
Thanks for giving such great advices, especially you’re mentioning/ pointing out about the familiarity of composer‘s language...
That really puts me into another level way of thinking , whenever I wanted to learn a new piece.
No problem, I‘m very gladly sharing your videos to some of the coulleges here :). (subscribed)
I do hope so that you could make those videos about it in the future!
Best of luck!
Carolin