sight reading, for the first time

[alocispepraluger102]

rich conaty was recounting vince giordano's band last tuesday night performing some first time sight-playing big band charts from the 30s.

is sight reading done in solo, group, and band competitions?

to a nonmusician, it would seem that this could make for some remarkably memorable and forgettable experiences.

Edited January 3, 2011 by alocispepraluger102

[DukeCity]

Sight reading is included in some band competitions. And working musicians are often called upon to sight-read in performance. Most big bands that do bar gigs (or commercial/club date/jobbing bands) will frequently have substitute players who are seeing the charts for the first time on the gig.

But the term "sight-reading" isn't really used much in the professional music world. When discussing a musician's skills we might talk about whether or not a player can "read" or if he's a "reader", but not use the term "sight-read."

It's kind of like reading English aloud. If you handed a book to someone or asked them to read from cue cards, a developed reader could say the phrases out loud in a natural, conversational way, even the first time. A less developed reader will speak in a halting, stilted manner as he struggles to figure out the phrases. But we wouldn't call it "sight-reading," we would just call it "reading."

[alocispepraluger102]

Sight reading is included in some band competitions. And working musicians are often called upon to sight-read in performance. Most big bands that do bar gigs (or commercial/club date/jobbing bands) will frequently have substitute players who are seeing the charts for the first time on the gig.

But the term "sight-reading" isn't really used much in the professional music world. When discussing a musician's skills we might talk about whether or not a player can "read" or if he's a "reader", but not use the term "sight-read."

It's kind of like reading English aloud. If you handed a book to someone or asked them to read from cue cards, a developed reader could say the phrases out loud in a natural, conversational way, even the first time. A less developed reader will speak in a halting, stilted manner as he struggles to figure out the phrases. But we wouldn't call it "sight-reading," we would just call it "reading."

thanks for the enlightenment.