EAR YES; Tabs no

Mark van Allen · Post by **Mark van Allen** » 5 Jul 2006 8:53 am

While I agree that Tab shouldn't be an exclusive path to learning, there are a number of ways we "learn" or train our synapses to produce or re-produce music.

I think using every tool we can to train the brain, in a multi-disciplinary approach, gives us the most to draw from.

For instance just a few areas where Tab can be a big help:

New players who just haven't developed their ear enough to pick out all the nuances of a performance.
Intermediate players who are developing their ear, and want to check their take on a tune against the tab notation to verify.
For quickly jotting down ideas in a lesson or jam session- much quicker sometimes than "show me that lick 7 or 8 times..."
For material like scales, slants, and patterns- using Tab or diagrams can often hit an entirely different part of our brain with a visual pattern that's not immediatley apparent. Many players improvise using "pockets" that show up very well in Tab or diagram form.
Revealing an alternate place to play something one figured out "by ear". I learned a lot about both John Hughey's playing and my own ear by comparing Tommy White's fine Tab from his CD to what I had figured out- including a few spots where I would have notated it differently than Tommy did, but especially some subtleties and nuances that I just hadn't heard the same. The insight into the Hughey style was really profound and helpful. (I will say those are much more detailed tabs than most).

In short, I believe we actually play "by ear" on the bandstand or studio gig, but Tab can be a helpful adjunct and a different way of "loading stuff into our hard drives". Many beginners wouldn't have a clue where to start looking if it wasn't for Tab.

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Stop by the Steel Store at: www.markvanallen.com

HowardR · Post by **HowardR** » 5 Jul 2006 12:42 pm

I guess there's more than one.....Tab Hunter.......

<pre>bad one...and I had to use the tab command for this small print</pre>[This message was edited by HowardR on 05 July 2006 at 01:44 PM.]