What if I told you, that you could significantly improve your abilities to read notation and play your instrument without actually doing either?
Now don't get me wrong, actually reading notation and playing your instrument are still vital if you want to, you know, read notation and play your instrument. But in those moments where you have no access to sheet music or musical instruments it is still possible to engage in highly beneficial practice. This technique isn't limited to musical practice either, even professional athletes also utilise this skill.
I hope that many who are reading this already know what technique I'm talking about and that they may be even more mindful and motivated to use it. But for those who are unaware, the technique I am talking about is visualisation.
Now, I apologise that this article lacks citation of relevant essays, medical journals and other evidence that back up this claim as I haven't bothered to research them. I believe there are more than enough available studies that are readily available to support this theory, let alone plenty of anecdotal evidence from musicians, athletes, and highly successful people.
As this series is focused on notation, the focus of this article will be on various visualisation techniques and exercises that will aid your understanding and progress in reading notation. These techniques and exercises are in no particular order of importance or effectiveness, and it is by no means an exhaustive list. I do believe that these do lay a decent foundation for you to get the gist of how to use visualisation to pursue your musical goals. You may find these techniques work best in conjunction with one another.
Technique #1 - Reading sheet music without an instrument.
I could argue that this helps bridge the mental connection between notation and your instrument more efficiently than actually playing your instrument with the sheet music - not that one should forsake one for the other as both are vital and even synergistic.
My reasoning behind this is because without the visual and physical aid of your instrument you are forced to use your imagination. Seeing your instrument while it isn't really there eliminates distraction and makes the process purely mental, what ever bad playing or thinking habits you may have attached to the instrument (such as those formed by dependence on tablature) are less present.
Simple exercise:
Get some blank manuscript. Write your clef of choice, a time signature of 4/4 and a bar containing four crotchets of middle C. Now without touching your instrument, pretend you are playing that bar. Although a bit dorky, it is also a useful practice to employ physical action such as air guitar.
Technique #2 - Reading sheet music without... sheet music...
As I wrote the above exercise, I was actually practicing this technique - Reading sheet music without sheet music.
As I typed up "Get some blank manuscript" I could see myself getting off my chair, walking over to pick up some imaginary sheet music, returning to the desk and sitting down. As I typed "write your clef of choice" I could see a treble clef. As I continued writing I saw all of these things. I'm hoping that as I write these things that you can see them too.
Just like the previous technique, this one improves your ability to do the real thing by eliminating distraction and working purely on the mental connections behind the action so that you are more prepared to do the actual task. This is great when you are lacking motivation, it may not be an instant fix but continuously thinking and visualising yourself doing any task is a great way to kind of trick yourself into eventually taking action.
Simple exercise:
Imagine you are at your desk with some blank manuscript. See a mental image of the paper and your hand holding a pen. See your hand writing a grand stave, a key signature of G major and a time signature of 3/4. Imagine the first bar has three crotchets of G below middle C placed in the bass clef, now imagine the second bar has three crotchets of G above middle C.
Technique #3 - Hearing music without... music...
Hearing and seeing are two different things so if we are being specific with our definitions this isn't exactly visualisation. It is however similar to visualisation and is very conducive when used in conjunction with visualisation.
Whether reading or writing music, we can have greater confidence in our work knowing that we are correctly interpreting or expressing the notes given. Even outside the realm of composition, being able to imagine and hear music you have never heard before is absolutely vital as a musician.
Simple exercise 1:
Many people do this without thinking much about it. Hum or whistle a made up tune, it's so easy. Now, stop making noise and continue that action in your mind. Imagine the melodies are not made by your mouth and vocal cords but by a violin.
Simple exercise 2:
Visualise some blank sheet music again. Visualise your hand holding a pen, writing a grand stave, a key signature of D minor (F major) and a time signature of 6/8. Now as you imagine writing these notes, imagine you can hear them being played on a piano. Imagine in the first bar you are writing three quavers of D beamed together above middle C in the treble clef, followed by a dotted crotchet rest. And in the bass clef imagine a dotted crotchet rest followed by three quavers of D below middle C beamed together. Now that you have imagined completing the first bar, imagine hearing the bar being played in its entirety.
I have a few more ways to use skills in visualisation in musical settings but this post is getting a bit large and I need a break from typing. Stay tuned for part 2b.
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