| Guitar Tabs Equals Paint by Numbers | | | | them to play that way. I'll even give them an |
| It amazes me that the over use of the tab | | | | occasional an "how cute." Heck, I've been told by |
| system for playing guitar has never before, that I | | | | well-meaning but misinformed parents to "just let |
| know of anyway, been equated to painting by | | | | them play and have fun, they don't need to learn |
| numbers. While it's fine for the amateur player | | | | theory". Personally I think it's fine that some learn |
| and garage band hack, it has increasingly been | | | | and play this way, as long as you confine it to old |
| brought into the real world of music. Some of you | | | | aunt Bessie and grandma or even some bucket |
| may remember all those tad polls and squiggly | | | | of blood in the Keys, but kindly do not include |
| lines, clefs, staffs and bars, Italian words like | | | | yourself as one of us. You are not. If you can't |
| legato, staccato and all those other ato's. They | | | | read music, know little to nothing about theory, |
| were fine for us and with the right teacher, | | | | then you are not a musician. |
| (which is increasingly hard to find, but that's | | | | I'm not trying to be harsh here, I'm only trying to |
| another article), they were even fun. It seems to | | | | protect the craft I've struggled to perfect, both |
| me that this wonderful teaching tool called | | | | playing and especially teaching. I've found that the |
| tablature has been abused in this immediate | | | | ones that don't care or are just lazy simply will |
| satisfaction world that now seems to exist. Not | | | | not learn any faster, with or without the tabs. |
| to mention the spitting in the face of Segovia, | | | | The real tragedies are the ones who do care or |
| Chet Atkins, Wes Montgomery, Joe Pass, Tal | | | | come to care later on and then it's even harder |
| Farlow, B.B. King, Eric Clapton, have I made my | | | | to learn theory. You go from this easy paint by |
| point yet. Tab hackers cannot be compared with | | | | numbers format and learning cool songs like |
| us, the true musicians. | | | | Sweet Home Alabama, Smoke on the Water to |
| It is the responsibility of us as teachers to not | | | | Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. Yea, that'll work. |
| give in to the pressures of easy play guitar or | | | | Guess what? You've just ruined what could have |
| any instrument for that matter. The guitar and | | | | become a fine musician, amateur or not, and |
| piano have become the most abused of these | | | | wasted all the money in lessons up to that point. |
| systems due to the numerical and patterned | | | | Not to mention the cost of the dust-gathering |
| designs of the instrument. True professionals | | | | instrument which, by the way, does not make a |
| should be insulted by the rash of infection within | | | | good clothes line like exercise machines. Most |
| our craft of ineptly trained players who in times | | | | importantly, you've given another blow to the |
| of old would have been confined to play only at | | | | true craftsmen, the musician. |
| family gatherings and high school summer bashes | | | | Kindly do not succumb to this practice, hire a real |
| of drunken teenagers who copped some beer | | | | professional with a lot of great references and |
| and weed. It's not to say that it's not nice for | | | | pay him the extra bucks, it's worth it. |