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DISCLAIMER: This page is for adults only and only for those who want more information about reading music. There is nothing required on this page for your student. It is here to help provide background and explanations. If you have further questions please email me; Elizabeth.Roth@mpls.k12.mn.us
As wonderful as it would be to instantly play music as Bach describes it, a remarkable thing is, once you've learned a little, it gets a little easier and easier until for some people, their instruments do play themselves!
The sequence for adults is usually more compact since adult learners process information differently. The best sequence for children imitates language acquisition. Listening, echoing, imitating, experimenting, improvising, creating and then learning to read and write. Most adults have had experience with pre-reading and are able to jump right in. Don't underestimate the value of listening and imitating and improvising and other pre-reading skills. If you feel lost go back and just have fun listening and doing.
There are several mnemonic devices to make rhythm reading easier and often faster. Many of them are used before students learn the theory behind music and symbols. You may remember one of these from when you were in school. The important element these systems all share is helping a student read rhythm with fluency. Once a rhythm is learned, playing or singing the melody becomes easier. Below are several systems that are used.
My method is considered a modified American or number system. I used to follow Kodaly with Ta's and ti-ti's but noticed that when students started instrumental music it didn't seem to help them with counting. Hopefully this method will have more carry-over. My modification leaves out numbering the beats. Rather than worry about time signatures, the beginning of each beat is called "beat." With long notes, thinking the vowel again helps keep track of the length of the note. With shorter notes after saying beat, the subdivisions have vowels that help differentiate the parts of the beat. My example is below (keep scrolling to see compound time).
When children start learning about melody, notes can be labeled using solfege; Do, Re, Mi, Sol, La (Pentatonic is often introduced first because of the large repertoire of folk music and since the interval of a 1/2 step can be difficult to sing in tune - relating to the syllables Fa and Ti). Using a moveable "Do" system helps tuneful singing because the tonal relationship is static. Once your ear is used to the sound of the intervals, it is very easy to change keys because there is no need to read key signatures, only maintain the tonal relationship. With a moveable "Do" there is just a new starting note and a new home base. Once it is necessary to read notation on the staff then letter names (and eventually key signatures) are introduced. Below are examples with Do in C major and in D major with the key signature. Other than C major and a natural minor (corresponding to the white keys on a piano) all other keys involve some type of alteration to the note adding a sharp or a flat.
Putting it all together. To read and perform music, two basic pieces of information are shared. The pitch (where it is on the staff plus looking at the key signature), the duration (what kind of note it is, plus looking at the time signature to be sure how many beats per measure). Depending on the instrument involved a manipulation is made to get the correct pitch for the correct length of time. As music gets more complicated and the performer moves from mastery to artistry, there are more symbols (more nuanced directions) that are easily read and interpreted and finally the artistic musician makes really fine music. Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star, a basic song for new instrumentalists (Suzuki uses it song#1 Book #1) is written out in a simple form. Look below and see how it can all change when Mozart interprets it. For a link to IMSLP, a repository for music in public domain, click on this link.
Twinkle C.pdfTwinkle D.pdfIMSLP56885-PMLP55775-Mozart_Werke_Breitkopf_Serie_21_KV265.pdfPage updated
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