[Kentl]

Originally Posted by guitarman531

You seem to be aware of your skill level and abilities and are setting goals for yourself.

Don't give up and don't compare yourself to others.

part of me feels like
five years playing and six months still kick my butt shows im not cut out for it

i mean i never prefroemd in front of a crowd "good"
ive played my stuff but its out of time or what ever

im just disuuoged that its been five years and im not close to playing guitar good
or even decnet

Originally Posted by guitarman531

Who cares if I'd be quicker or someone else might be slower at learning the same thing as you're working on? Progress at your own pace and keep us updated. Learning the standard notation will be helpful in the long-run. You may not be able to imagine how it will help you, but--as a musician--you can't go wrong learning more about the basics of music.

Write down your goals and keep your focus on them. When it comes to how fast you achieve them, don't worry about anyone else...just be sure you're setting and meeting good goals and not cheating yourself.

what do you mean dont cheat yourself?

[gtrdave]

Originally Posted by Kentl

you say it helps but how dose it help?

Learning to read helps you know how to read music in a "standard" fashion that is understood around the world by a wide variety of musicians. Knowing how to read affords you the ability to communicate musically on a greater level than not knowing how.
Tabs, while useful in some instances, are reserved only for guitarists (afaik) and are typically incomplete in the information that they give and commonly incorrect.
Guitar for the Practicing Musician magazine used to feature some really good tabs, but they would always print them parallel with standard notation.

[jeepnstein]

You're around fourteen or so, aren't you? I don't really believe you should be worrying too much about anything yet. If you can play at all then you're way ahead of the curve. It could very well be that your head is still wiring itself to process information that some of us older guys take for granted. Time lines and benchmarks are for high school, not for your art. Don't dwell on what you can't do yet. There's plenty of time for that when you're in your thirties.

There will come a time when you want to start playing with others. When that happens, you will do a couple of things rather quickly. Firstly, your playing will improve dramatically. Secondly, you'll realize there's an awful lot to be said for being able to clearly communicate with other musicians through written music. Oh, and you'll also quickly realize that the other guys aren't all that great either. If you're lucky you'll run into one or two players who are really good, depending on what you're playing.

Tab is for learning fast and getting a body of songs that you can share with others. Everyone does it and it is a perfectly acceptable way to learn some things. If you're hanging out with buddies and maybe forming a band then tab is good enough. You won't really grow that much with it even though you might develop some chops. Most of the people I play with are tab only. Shoot, some of them can't even manage that.

Reading music is for digging in deeply and really learning to play as a musician. I know a guy who actually got thrown out of a studio by an irate producer after he asked for a part in tab. He was replaced by a session player in a matter of minutes. His band mates just sat silently and let it happen because they were on the razor's edge of getting a good break. There is a huge difference between a guitarist who has spent some time with theory and sight reading and a guy who just plays tab.

Now knock it off with the excuses and just play your guitar. You obviously want to raise your playing to another level. That's good. Some times that can be a real struggle. The choice is whether you want to be known as the guy that everyone has to work with in rehearsal to get up to speed or the one who can just drop in and play.

What guitar course are you using to learn sight reading? Who's book is it?

[Kentl]

Originally Posted by gtrdave

Learning to read helps you know how to read music in a "standard" fashion that is understood around the world by a wide variety of musicians. Knowing how to read affords you the ability to communicate musically on a greater level than not knowing how.
Tabs, while useful in some instances, are reserved only for guitarists (afaik) and are typically incomplete in the information that they give and commonly incorrect.
Guitar for the Practicing Musician magazine used to feature some really good tabs, but they would always print them parallel with standard notation.

Originally Posted by jeepnstein

You're around fourteen or so, aren't you? I don't really believe you should be worrying too much about anything yet. If you can play at all then you're way ahead of the curve. It could very well be that your head is still wiring itself to process information that some of us older guys take for granted. Time lines and benchmarks are for high school, not for your art. Don't dwell on what you can't do yet. There's plenty of time for that when you're in your thirties.

im 16

Originally Posted by jeepnstein

What guitar course are you using to learn sight reading? Who's book is it?

guitar course?
Guitar method book one beginner

and its by gaty turner & Brenton White

[jeepnstein]

Sixteen? How time flies.

You're sixteen. Don't worry about it yet. Mix the enjoyable stuff with the necessary and you'll be miles ahead in a few years. Yeah, I said in years, not months or weeks. I think you're just being impatient, you know, a typical teenager. Don't ever fall for the lie that most players got their skills easily. The 10,000 hour rule applies to everyone.

I know that book you're using. It's pretty good. It's also about as boring as watching paint dry. Music theory is not something lots of folks find all that exciting. Just do your time, get the practice pieces down every week, and you'll see progress. Don't expect it to be exciting or fun. Don't figure on anything you learn from the course being music that will be performed on stage. Block off a half hour a day for nothing but your lessons. Be diligent about preparing your work. Two hours of preparation for session of classroom instruction is about right for most people. If it were easy there wouldn't be millions of tabs floating around, would there?

The knowledge you'll gain from learning that stuff will eventually launch you into the position of being able to play things the other guys just don't understand. There will come a day when you'll be able to relate with other musicians on a level that the "Dude, can you show me that lick one more time?" crowd just can't. You want to write music? Well you're learning the right kinds of things by getting some theory and reading standard notation.

Doing the right thing isn't always fun or easy. You're doing it right and paying the price. It'll pay off in the end.

Oh, and if you get completely frustrated just put down the guitar for a day or two. It works. Some times you need to just let your head reset itself. Spend the time you'd practice in prayer instead. Then get back to work.