We got a lot of great players already in this group and a lot of them play by ear so if ya want to learn this is the place

532 Members, Created 1/26/2011 -

Administrators: rickshunter1 (owner)

Just began learning

From Jarvis13 on 9/12/2011 12:45:19 PM

I just began learning how to play by ear - kinda, ain't sure if it counts, but I get some help from MIDI files. I alternate between the banjo and the Tabledit program, then arrange them there, or write it all down on a piece of paper with blank tablature, then later I transfer to Tabledit, then try them on the banjo to see if the chords can be physically done, and modify them accordingly.

I was inspired by Tom here, and Mr. Veerman, and my first work, or half of it, was Het WIlhelmus, I wasn't able to finish it but almost got the whole thing done, then Mr. Veerman came to my rescue where I was stuck with his own arrangement. I did what I got by listening to the piece played on an electronic keyboard. But I was surprised I was able to do anything at all, to be honest!

Now I am having fun arranging Super Mario tunes for the banjo - I never thought I would be capable of doing so! I actually arranged 4 Super Mario tunes and they sound very good! None of them exist for banjo tablature (I didn't do the main, most famous one yet), so I did not cheat at all, just did them all by ear! It's so fun and exciting, I've never been happier - the only time I ever got excited this much with my banjo was when I got it for the first time!

I chose Mario tunes because they are relatively simple, they are funny and I played a lot of Super Mario when I was a kid (actually I still do, lol) and they are literally engraved in my mind, beat by beat, so it made my job easier. But I'm doing Flower of Scotland, and it sounds nice already. I get the melody notes taken care of first, then I add music to the gaps, out-of-the-way notes, usually not fretted, to make sure I don't "cover up" the melody notes, but I'm sure I will develop this new-found skill within me in due time. It's so cool!

I wanted to share this, because besides of being excited, I would like to personally encourage anyone to try playing by ear, because you don't know if you're capable until you try it out. I did, and I couldn't be happier, it's like you get real close and inside a tune in a way you can never do by learning it off a pre-made tab. If you ain't tried it yet, give it a shot, it's a lot of fun, even the frustrating parts, where you get stuck - the exhilarating feeling you get once you figure it out and unstuck, and hear your melody coming together is indescribable!

2 Comments
	JanetB says: 9/19/2011 4:25:08 PM Hear, hear, I agree. Your brain and you do something magical after having fed it over time with various musical input. Then, PRESTO, you're the creator. Ain't it fun!
Jarvis13 says: 9/19/2011 9:24:11 PM It's the most fun I ever had with this here banjo, I'm now working on a Flower of Scotland arrangement of my own, and the Mario tune sounds pretty good already! Yep, no wonder this group is the largest, it don't get more fun than playing by ear! I hope I will develop this thing well and maybe someday write my own stuff, who knows what anybody is capable of, right? Thanks.
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