First Sight Reading (piano)

Hello everyone!

I just wanted to open this post to get some advice on techniques or excercises about first sight reading. My sight reading (piano music) is in a beginner-intermediate level and id like to improve it.

Im sure that people in this forum with advanced sight reading can help us the newbies with some techniques and advices about how to improve our sight reading skills. I apreciatte any comments.

See ya guys!:)

Actually, the only thing you can do to improve sight-reading is to sight read. Take any piece of music you can get your hands on, and play it, no matter what instrument it is written for.

Sight reading requires you to play confidently and to keep moving, even if you mess something up. So, if you're the type who stops playing every time you make an error - BREAK YOURSELF OF THAT HABIT.

EDIT: on second read, I notice you're a pianist. Even more importantly for pianists, you must learn to keep a steady beat when sight reading. Pianists are notorious for being unable to play (for lack of a better word) mechanically, instead speeding up on easy parts and slowing down on difficult parts. Learning to play perfectly in time regardless of missed notes, botched figures, or mangled harmony is a very important skill! If you are ever to play with an orchestra, a band, or simply accompanying a soloist, you must have these skills, or you're going to screw up the other person(s). Sight reading is a fabulous time to practice this skill as well.

Hey thanks a lot for your answer. I will have in mind and actually im practicing right now.

But besides your advices in my question i was talking about more specific techniques for sight reading. For example, put the sheets a bit far or use your panoramic view or stuff like that that someone in this forum that used it can explain us how apply it to our daily reading.

If someone can help me or recommend me a book on this Id really appreciate it.

I'm not sure there IS a "technique" for improving sight-reading other than simply reading lots and lots and LOTS of music.

I know some great pianists with far better technique than mine, yet they couldn't sight-read their way out of a wet paper bag.

I, on the other hand, actually sight-read my way through some Bach and Mozart for an exam and actually got marks in the low 90's from the adjudicator who didn't realize I was bullsh**ing my way through the music.

I've found that my experience as a rehearsal pianist has probably given me an inordinate amount of help in sight-reading.

I guess something like "Look at the music and not at your fingers." Cuz' that's what you have to do with vibes- put the music pretty much over the notes you're gonna play, so you can see them out of your periferal vision.

I don't think you have that much liberty on a piano, but I suppose it's the same concept, especially since the keys are different colors...

~Kal

Thanks everyone for your help. Ill have all this tips in mind.

bye!

i think if you are sight reading something really classical, sometimes you can almost predict what's going to be next. that kind of helps.

^On that note (bad pun), always look ahead! Even if you think you know what the composer will do, you may be wrong!

^On that note (bad pun), always look ahead! Even if you think you know what the composer will do, you may be wrong!

true. :P

Well, I just got through a workshop where our instructor had a book that is supposed to help with sight reading. It involved naming notes in different meters, identifying intervals and a whole bunch of other stuff. Of course, it was for stringed instruments but I imagine there are plenty of similar work books or exercises for piano.

I am not the worlds most advanced piano player, but my sight reading is very good.

A few tips on how I improved my sight reading:

1: funny enough this is not music related, but I started to learn to read blocks of texts. Take a big book, focus on one point and see how quickly and how much text you can read without moving your eyes. Do this every day half an hour and you will notify improvement also on sight reading music.

2: quickly browse through a music piece and highlight a few spots that seems very important for you with a colourmarker. It is easier to read from marked to marked piece and you have some guidance already.

3: hand/eye reaction is more important then you think. Do all kind of excercises to improve your hand/eye coordination. The better that is, the quicker you communicate between the different brainparts that are needed to do good sight reading.

Sightsinging is insanely helpful for sight-reading.

i just thought of a new wacky/helpful idea!

get your piano teacher to sit beside you and watch while you sight read, and he/she gets to hit you with a stick whenever you play a wrong note or slow down. :shifty::evil:

i just thought of a new wacky/helpful idea!

get your piano teacher to sit beside you and watch while you sight read, and he/she gets to hit you with a stick whenever you play a wrong note or slow down. :shifty::evil:

nice ideas, specially that of practice with a book...what kinds of excercise for eye'finger coordinations? Thanks a lot!

as for me i learned sight reading with eye and finger exercises, piano practice blind folded so that i could play even without looking at it. practice until you see change.

Hmmm I'm not a very good sight reader myself but better than many other people around me. One very useful tip that I used when I sight read is to count the beat aloud while playing like for crochets I would count: 1 2 3 4.

For quavers I would count: 1&2&3&4& ( I actually say out loud "and")

For semi quavers or dotted quavers: 1-&-2-&-3-&-4-&- (- is pronouce it as "the")

So by counting out loud, I generally able to place my notes on time without going off beat. It might be hard at first but if you practice counting often u won't need to count aloud and still able to play it rather smoothly.

Another thing about sight reading would be the fingering. Before u start anything, I suggest taking a pencil and writing down some fingering. Dont write for every single note lol that would spoil it's purpose. Write for the starting chord/notes and write down everytime a change of fingering is needed, eitherwise br strict with yourself and use all your fingers to play the neighbouring notes.

General rule: lowest notes for right hand gets 1 and highest gets 5.

For left hand lowest gets 5 and highest gets 1

Lastly about the tiresome accidentals...well I normally play the scale of the key of the piece I'm playing in order to familarise myself with the accidentals...but all I can say it is staying alert and constant reminder to yourself :)

Relax when sightreading and start slow.

Curve your fingers with the palm of your hand in a ball shape to keep your fingers and wrist relax. Well that's all I can remember about sight reading :) have fun!

I'm not the best sight reader in the world,

my sight read also begginner-intermediate.

But my teacher recommend me this tips to improve sight reading:

1. Sight Singing, everyday

2. Major and Minor Scale Practice before sight read

3. Make up any notes if you mess up

4. Know the form : Sonata, Rondo, etc (for me it's really useful)

5. Practice (obviously), in any instrument is ok, but I prefer piano

6. Happy sight reading ;)