How to Read Music in One Evening eBook Review throws light on an online course that promises to help you read sheet music in a few hours.
According to the author of this program Mr. Duane, “With correct technique, you can easily learn how to read music within a few hours. This feat does not require months or even years to learn. There is a three stage teaching methodology that allows you to master reading music from the sheet in a jiffy.”
Mr. Duane goes on to state that his online teaching mechanism has the ability to teach you the basic principles of reading music within the first four hours of starting off with his lessons. The three main ingredients of this course are harmony, melody and rhythm. Once you understand the co-relation between these three, you can easily read sheet music in a jiffy.
What do you Mean by Reading Music?
Reading music implies reading music from a sheet of paper hat has certain symbols imprinted on it. Sheet Music has been used for several hundred years. It denotes the speed, the rhythm and the pitch of each song.
The Symbols Used in Sheet Music
A quick look at each of these in brief:
The Staff
The most important section of the sheet music is the staff. It acts a foundation, on which a house is built. It has four spaces and five lines. These lines denote a letter and that letter denotes a particular note. The notes start from the letter “A”, all the way up till the letter “G”. The movement of these notes is in an upward manner, following a sequential pattern.
The Bass Clef
The bass clef is also denoted as the F clef. It is located between two bass clef dots. The bass clef is usually used when your instrument produces a low pitch (for example a cello or a bassoon). All low notes placed onto the keyword are also placed within the Bass Clef.
The Treble Clef
On the far left hand corner of the sheet is the letter “G”. This letter denotes the treble chef. This clef is used mainly for instruments that deliver a high pitch (for example a violin or a flute). All high notes placed onto the keyboard are also denoted via the treble clef.
The Notes
There are three parts of notes (the stem, the head and the flag) and these notes are placed onto the staff. These notes are present on the staff. The note heads present within each individual notes are either filled or empty. Filled notes are denoted by black color wherein empty notes are denoted by white color.
There are times wherein the note heads are placed either below or above the note staff. At times, these notes are placed horizontally between the staff. The positioning of these notes denotes which note you need to play on your instrument.
The stem of the note also extends in all known directions. These extensions have nothing to do with the way you play the instrument but these extensions allow the note to fit well within the staff. They also allow you to read the note easily. Notes places above the B line have their stems pointing downwards, whereas notes placed below the B line have their stems pointing upwards.
Note Flags:
The note flag denotes how long the instrumentalist needs to hold a particular note. A single flag has the ability to shorten the note, whereas multiple flags can shorten the notes even further. The note value is also denoted in the sheet music chart. A “quarter note” denotes that the instrumentalist should play just one note. A “half note” denotes that the musician should play two beats. An open note (also termed as a whole note), gets four beats.
If a dot is placed after a head note, then the note needs to be extended by one point. At the same time, if a tie is prefixed after the note, then that note needs to be extended. In case you have to play these notes in a fast manner, then these can be denoted via flags or beams.
The Beat Meter of Sheet Music
When you are reading sheet music, you also need to read the beat meter, in order to either increase or decrease the tempo of your beat. This is similar to when you dance or clap, or tap your foot, while listening to a beat or a song. You also need to understand that in order to “pick up the beat” you need to read the “time signature” of that song. The top and the bottom of the note have a “time signature”.
The beat measurement is denoted by the top number, whereas the bottom number denotes the value (note) of every individual beat. You also need to keep in mind the “tempo” of the concerned beat. This is similar to the rhythm of the song and it is measured in beats per minute. The tempo is placed on top of a sheet music and it tells you whether you need to play a fast or a slow number.
A 75 beat per minute Tempo denoted that you need to play 75 notes in 60 seconds. At the same time, a 145 beats per minute Tempo denoted that you need to play 145 beats within 60 seconds. Common Tempo signs are denoted via Italian words such as “Presto” or “Largo”. The metronome is used by most musicians to read the Tempo in the most suitable manner.
Largo Tempo denoted 50 beats per minute. Adagio Tempo denotes 70 beats per minute. Moderato Tempo denotes 110 beats per minute. Allegro Tempo denotes 120 to 160 beats per minute. Presto Tempo denotes 180 beats per minute.
The Melody Aspect of Sheet Music
In order to play a melody, you need to learn how to read the scales. Each scale has 8 notes that are place one after the other in chronological order. An “Octave” is denoted as the interval between the first and the last note of scale “C”. The most important note is the “C” note and you should learn to read this note in order to play your instrument accurately.
The pitch of a note gets higher when the notes ascend on the scale and vice versa. The half steps on the keyboard are denoted by “Semitones”.
Highlights of How to Read Music in One Evening eBook
The highlights of this course are that you get to learn how to read sheet music in just a few days. Contrary to the few months it ideally takes to master this art, the techniques and tricks used in this online music reading course are fantastic. These tricks and techniques allow you to reduce your learning curve by a considerable margin.
In just four hours of starting off with this course, you have the ability to learn the basics of sheet music reading. In fact, from the very first day itself, you would be able to learn this art. The three main principles of sheet music reading – the rhythm, the harmony and the melody are all covered extensively in this course. When you learn to co-relate the above mentioned three principles of sheet music, you would actually be able to master this art in record time.
This technique is affordable and it costs just $39. At the same time, it is possible to master this technique in just a few days. The creator of this course Duane has also stated that it is guaranteed to work in your favor, provided you diligently follow all that is being taught in the course.
The melody denotes the tune of a sing. The rhythm denotes the beat or the pulse of a song. The harmony denotes the chords that provide adequate support to a melody. The author of this eBook claims that within the first 2 hours, you would be able to understand rhythm and within three hours, you would have the basic understanding of the note values of a song. These note values include quarter notes, half notes, full notes and rests.
Within three hours of starting off with this course, you would also be able to learn notes. You would understand unisons, intervals and chords. You would then slowly begin to understand and read augmented chords, extended chords and inversions.
At the same time, you have the ability to try this course for 56 days without facing any sort of monetary risk. If within this time period, you are unable to make any headway in your sheet reading capability, you can ask for a complete refund. This refund shall be issued with immediate effect and no questions shall be asked by the owner of this course.
My Take
For a serious musician, spending $39 and mastering sheet music reading within days, is like a dream come true. If you are serious about reading music in the shortest possible time-span, then “How to read Music in One Evening eBook” is best suited for you.
This course has been developed by a trained musician. This course is also risk-free (monetarily) for the first two months. Nonetheless, you need to be dedicated towards learn what is being taught in this course. You also need to practice and perfect your sheet reading skills.
This course is definitely a boon for serious musicians and instrumentalists.