Fun with sheet music

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guitarbuddha

Posts: 2970
Joined: Jan. 4 2007

Fun with sheet music

So I got a nice answer from Estebanana on my fledgeling Creativity thread. Basically sound advice about how sight-reading can spur creativity. It gave me a few ideas but rather than go on about it there I thought it might need a seperate thread.

Here is a short list of fun things to do with sheet music.

1) Play a load by one composer for an hour or two. Close the book and keep going.

2) Play through a load of simple folk tunes ( I use the incomparable Hunter edition of Scottish fiddle tunes, one for every day of the year ). Close the book and keep going.

3) Take a really tough section of a piece maybe 4 or eight bars that can be looped and still sound musically coherent. Play only what happens on the first beat of the bar. When this starts to sound GREAT add one more note in each bar and repeat till the music gets filled in.

4) Take a simple melody or classical study or easy flamenco piece. Play whatever happens on the first beat in the bar till it sound GREAT (again) then make the rest of each bar up.

5) Play the first bar and MAKE UP the second, continue through whole piece one as written one plucked out of the air.

5bis) Make up the FIRST bar and play the second as written (MUCH harder than 5 was).

6) Play a simple Sor study till really familiar. With a pencil write the harmonic scheme above each bar. Play ignoring the music and follow the harmonic scheme.

7) Same as six but this time write an alternative chord scheme above each bar, read the music but don't play it let it suggest the texture that you will play to the new chord scheme.

8) A real easy and fun on. Take a simple classical piece which stays in one major key. Play as if it had one extra flat note and voila you have a myxolidain version.

9) As above but add one sharp and voila Lydian.

10) Do it with a minor piece and voila weird exotic scales !!!

So there are a few ideas.

It is to my lasting regret that most of this cannot be done with the vast majority of flamenco editions ( of buleria and alegria and a lot of solea and fandangos) as the bar lines are all in the wrong places.

But you can do it with tangos (yipee).

D.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Jun. 28 2013 6:53:00

Guest

[Deleted] (in reply to guitarbuddha)

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Jun. 28 2013 8:46:36

guitarbuddha

Posts: 2970
Joined: Jan. 4 2007

RE: Fun with sheet music (in reply to Guest)

Cheers Darth

, keep em rollin guys.

1.) Take a hot lick which can be played on the top four stings in open postition. Jump back a string and adjust, jump back a string and adjust. You will have played it in three keys.

2.) Take the same lick and play it on the next set of strings but to the same chord. This will mean lots of adjusting and you will be forced to make creative choices.

3.) Take the same lick and keep it on the first four strings move it around the neck following the circle of fifth.

4.) Keep it in postion but map it to new chords following the cycle of fifths.

Bach wrote lots of great licks. You can do any of the four above to a good lick and if you repeat it three times with, a significant variation the third time, then you've written the opening to a prelude.

D.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Jun. 28 2013 10:25:54

Guest

RE: Fun with sheet music (in reply to guitarbuddha)

Handy for transposition
Grab a simple piece in an easy key
While reading play in an alternative key, fingering wise
( figure woodwind and brass players do this all the time )
Transpose using a variety of intervals
Mi and Maj 2nd, mi 3rd etc etc

Or if learning a piece
Start from the last bar and work your way to the beginning
Makes for a strong ending..

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Jun. 28 2013 23:52:54

guitarbuddha

Posts: 2970
Joined: Jan. 4 2007

RE: Fun with sheet music (in reply to Guest)

Cheers Val, excellent advice.

Seems impossible at first (and definitely not for the novice) but a little perseverance and it pays off in spades.

D.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Jun. 29 2013 0:58:35

estebanana

Posts: 9358
Joined: Oct. 16 2009

RE: Fun with sheet music (in reply to guitarbuddha)

Study playing bulerias in E flat or one of the other flat keys, that aught to shake you.

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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Jun. 29 2013 5:17:19

guitarbuddha

Posts: 2970
Joined: Jan. 4 2007

RE: Fun with sheet music (in reply to estebanana)

Well I've only got one buleria in D# so I should work on it more.

I definately prefer to think of it as D# as it is more relatable to Bmajor and G#minor only one jump from the Emajor groups. But heading flat there are the mostly alien worlds (in terms of available 'guitar' scores) of Eb Ab Db Gb to get through on the way to the Cb group (of which Eb phrygian is a member)

The open E string the Eb system would be Fb.

Maybe not importand if you are working with tab. But since this thread is about fun WITH sheet music that is my preference.

D.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Jun. 29 2013 12:59:12