Hello and welcome back. I'm Joseph Hoffman, and today we're going to do a sight reading challenge.
I'll present you with three different sight reading exercises from Sight Reading Trainer Book One,
and I'll challenge you to sight read them on your piano.
Are you ready to take the challenge?
Let's get started with exercise number 93.
For each exercise today we're going to follow the steps that you can find on page fourteen of Sight Reading Trainer Book One.
The first step is to identify the clef and the time signature. So what clef are we using?
If you said bass clef, you're correct. And what's our time signature?
If you said 4/4, you're correct, and that top number tells us we'll count four beats in every measure.
Which brings us to step two, which is to tap the Rhythm while we count the beat.
Since our top number is four, we'll count four beats in every measure and tap whenever we see a note.
Don't forget that during a rest you'll still count the beat but not tap anything.
A rest still takes up a beat, so we would in measure one here tap 1 2 3 4, say 4, but don't tap.
Now, today my challenge is to do as much on your own as possible so I'm going to count 4 beats to get started,
and then I'd like you to tap on your own the rhythm that you see.
So I'll count 4 beats and then tap and be sure to count the beat out loud along with me. Here's 4 beats to get ready.
1 2 3 4
1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4,
1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4
Great job, now the next step is to point and say all the letter names for each note.
So, before we do that just take a quick glance and tell me what you notice about how these notes are moving.
Are they moving by step, or skip, or repeat mostly?
I don't see any steps the whole time. Notice that all the notes are space notes,
and when you have space notes,
remember if you skip from a space to the next space that's a skipping pattern.
So we have some repeats, but then the rest are all skips. All skips and repeats.
So now can you point and say the letter name for this first note?
If you said bass C, you're correct. This is one of our guide notes.
Remember, bass C is three spaces down. One, two, three, spaces down, and bass clef brings us to bass C.
Now can you name the rest of the notes? I'll point and you name each note, the letter name, go. C, now on your own.
Rest
So if you said C C E rest, G G G, rest, G G E, rest, C E C, you're correct.
It's all C E and G in this melody.
Now we're ready to try to play it.
Now remember, for this challenge I want you to do as much on your own as possible.
So can you figure out for the next step where to place your hand?
Remember for the bass clef we're using the left hand. Can you use the first note and finger number to find your hand position?
Pause the video if you need more time,
but you'll take finger 5
because of that number 5 and place it on a bass C which will land you in this C major pentascale position.
So now I'd like you to pause the video, and do the next two steps on your own.
You're going to play and name the notes. Use the letter names,
and then try to play it one more time while you count the beat out loud.
So pause to work on those two steps on your own, then press play we'll check it out together.
All right for your last step it should have sounded like this:
1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4,
1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4.
If that match what you played, great job.
If you need more practice with it, no problem. You can always pause to get some more practice,
but if you're ready, let's go on to the next exercise.
Next up let's try exercise number ninety-seven. So, back to step one. Can you tell me what clefs you see?
We have a treble and a bass clef, which forms our grand staff.
Remember, our right hand will play all the notes on top, left hand will play all the notes on the bottom
And what time signature did you see?
Once again we have a 4/4 time signature, so we'll count 4 beats per measure.
Which means we're ready for step two.
This time when we tap the rhythm, use your left hand for any notes down here in the bass staff
so you can do this on your lap or any flat surface,
and use your right hand for any notes you see up in the treble staff. So this first measure would sound like this: 1 2 3 4
Make sure your right hand takes a turn there, your left hand's tapping these three notes while you count the beat.
So once again I'd like you to try this on your own.
Use your left hand for the notes down here, right hand up here, and count the beat out loud with me.
I'll give you 4 beats to get ready, and then you'll start here tapping with your left hand on beat 1.
Try it on your own, tap and count, ready here we go. 1 2 3 4,
1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4,
1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4
Great job, now next step is to name the letter names for each note.
Can you tell me the letter name for this first note in the left hand?
If you said bass C, you're correct. Once again we have our guide note one, two, three, spaces down. Three rhymes with C.
Three spaces down is bass C. Can you name these other letters? Go, C, now you go.
If you said C D E, you're correct, and then for this
we have a chord, so we can just say chord, because it could be kind of tedious to name all the notes in a chord,
but we should check it's a C and G together, but we'll just say chord.
Now keep going on your own. Name the letters.
If you said C D E chord, again you're correct.
Now sometimes it's helpful to remember where you were. Remember that this was an E
because that can help you figure out this one.
Or you could just see that it's a guide note, so what do we have here? Say the letter names.
If you said F E D F, you're correct.
And remember that that was an F to help you figure out these two.
Say their letter names.
If you said E C, you're correct, and then we finish with another C G chord.
Now, let's try to play it.
Now for exercise 97, we'll need to find a hand position for both hands. So,
can you show me on your piano, try to find your hand position for the left hand first since the left hand starts.
Pause if you need more time,
but once again we have finger 5 on bass C, so your hand position should be here.
Now, can you show me on your piano where to place the right hand?
The right hand is fingers 1 and 5 on middle C and G.
So both hands are landing in the C pentascale for this exercise.
Now, once again on your own I'd like you to try to play this by yourself.
So pause the video and the first time play and name the letter notes, and then try it one more time while you play and count
the beat.
Little tip, try and keep your eyes on the page the whole time not your fingers. Just trust your fingers
that they're going to be where they need to be, and let your eyes stay on the page,
and just communicate with your fingers to tell them which notes to play.
Pause to work on that, and then press play and I'll show you the correct answer.
Okay, if you played 97 correctly it will sound like this:
1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4
If that matched what you played, great job.
If you need more time you can always pause to get more practice,
but if you're ready let's go on to the next and final exercise for today.
Last up today, let's do exercise 99.
Step one, what are the clefs and time signature?
If you said treble clef and bass clef, you're correct,
and our time signature is 4/4.
So 4 beats per measure.
Now looking ahead at the rhythms, we have some eighth notes. Remember that two eighth notes together both take up 1 beat.
So when you get here, you'll have to tap two sounds inside beat 3.
So it might sound like this. We'll use our left hand to tap these two chords, 1 2 3 4.
Notice that on 3 I had to tap a TI-TI. 3
Two sounds inside beat 3, and then beat 4 gets one quarter note. So TA TA TI-TI TA,
but we're going to count using the more professional counting system. 1 2 3 4
Now you try.
Tap this rhythm in measure one with me while we count the beat. Ready, go.
1 2 3 4.
Good, now let's keep going.
Can you tap the rest with me? Let's try measure two.
Tap and count with me, ready go.
1 2 3 4
Remember to hold that half note for 2 beats, and now in this measure which hand is tapping right hand or left hand?
if you said right hand you're correct. Our right hand again remember two eighth notes both share a beat,
so here's beat 1, here's beat 2, we have 1, 2, beat 3,
Two more eighth notes, and then beat 4. So it will sound like this: 1 2 3 4.
Now try it with me, ready go.
1 2 3 4,
and then let's tap this measure right hand then left hand, 2 beats on each half note, ready go.
1 2 3 4
Now let's try the whole rhythm together. Tap and count left hand for the bass clef,
right hand for the treble clef.
Tap and count with me,
Ready, go.
1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4
Next step is to point and say the letter names for each note.
So for this chord what two notes do you see building that chord?
Can you tell me the letter names?
If you said bass F and middle C, you're correct. It's a base F middle C chord, TA TA,
is what the left hand will play there.
Looking ahead, that's the same chord the whole time. So let's focus now on the right hand part.
what letter do you see here? Can you tell me it?
If you said F, you're correct. So we have F, F, F, chord, chord, and then what letter do you see here?
If you said E, you're correct,
and then what letter do you see here?
Notice we've gone on to that space right below the staff.
That's a D, D D D, then what do you see here?
If you said E E E, you're correct, and then what about this one?
We have F, and then a chord.
Now let's try to play it.
For exercise 99, since the left hand plays first, let's find the left hand position first.
On your piano can you show me where to place your left hand?
Try to find it on your own piano.
Your clues are always what note is it playing and what finger numbers.
Well, we need a chord
with an F and a C, so you'll place your fingers 5 and 1 on F, bass F and middle C.
That's your position for the left hand.
Now, so you might think oh I know the position from our right hand it's going to be an F major pentascale,
but you can't always count on that.
When you're sight reading, your hands as we get to more advanced music aren't always going to be in the same
pentascale. So let's look carefully.
What is the first note the right hand plays?
If you said F, you're correct, but it's not a finger 1, it's a finger 3. So notice
that the hands are next door neighbors. They're not in the same position.
So be really careful and
watch out for hand position in these sight reading exercises, especially as they get more challenging like this.
Now, on your own I'd like you to pause the video now that we're in the correct position,
pause and try to play these notes while you name the notes out loud.
For the chord you can just say chord, chord, F, F, F, like that,
and then try it again while you count the beat, then press play and I'll show you the correct answer.
Here's what exercise 99 should sound like.
1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4
If that matched what you played, great job.
If it didn't, that's okay.
You can always get more practice. Making mistakes is part of how we learn.
So just keep trying it until you feel like you've got it down.
Great job completing today's sight reading challenge.
On your own, I strongly recommend that you practice sight reading every day as part of your daily piano practice.
Use Sight Reading Trainer Book 1,
and try one or two exercises every day using the steps that we practiced today, which you can find on page 14
of Sight Reading Trainer Book 1.
Every time you complete an exercise, you can mark it in your book with a check
to help keep track of which ones you've already completed.
Thanks for watching and learning with me, and happy practicing!
Monkey, now it's your turn to learn how to sight read.
I'll tell you how the notes are moving, and you play it on the piano, okay?
You ready? It starts on bass C. Go ahead, play a bass C.
Good, now repeat.
Now step up.
Good, step up.
Now jump down.
Oh!
I meant to say skip down! Sorry!
Monkey, can you hear me?