[Menvi-discuss] Learning Print Music

Wed Sep 7 22:10:26 EDT 2011

Dear Kaiti,

You are right.  There are certain things that sighted musicians need to know
that are not currently critical for you to know.  But your teachers are
right to look ahead and foresee that you will need to know certain details
about how sighted musicians operate.  In fact, they are actually giving you
a vote of confidence by doing so.  They are imagining you as a blind teacher
of sighted students.  In my book, that makes them real teachers and makes me
think that you are in a good place right now.

The reality is that our sighted teachers, peers and students can get along
just fine without knowing how a blind musician reads and writes music.  But,
as with so many other challenges of being blind, we must learn how sighted
musicians function if we hope to interact optimally with them as classmate,
band mate, teacher, etc.  You are smart to accept your teachers' advice and
realize that, worst case, you might be "over prepared" for your further
education and career.  I like your attitude.

Bill McCann 
Founder and President of Dancing Dots since 1992
www.DancingDots.com
Tel: [001] 610-783-6692

-----Original Message-----
From: menvi-discuss-bounces at menvi.org
[mailto:menvi-discuss-bounces at menvi.org] On Behalf Of Kaiti Shelton
Sent: Wednesday, September 07, 2011 8:11 PM
To: This is for discussing music and braille literacy
Subject: Re: [Menvi-discuss] Learning Print Music

Hi,

I have told my teacher the basic differences between braille and print
music.  I have even gone as far as to say phrases such as, "I'm never going
to have to physically read or write key signatures or music at all for that
matter in print," and "The way the braille system works, the symbols take
care of everything the staff does, just in a different way."  I have also
explained to him that Braille music is read on a single line without staff
lines and spaces.  I even tried to justify using Lime to notate key
signatures for me by pointing out that just as the sighted students need to
know how a staff and the musical symbols look visually, I need to know other
things that the sighted students do not such as octave markings and symbols
only found in the braille music code.  However, the music department at my
school justified this decision by pointing out that none of the other kids
can make markings with a few clicks, and that if I'm ever in a teaching
position, which is what I want to do someday, I'll need to know the
structure of the staff in order to teach any sighted music students I may
have.  In the end, the point of taking this class now is to prepare me for
college theory, and though I don't fully agree with this decision myself, I
figure it's better to be over-prepared and know something I may have to use
in the future, even if it's only on rare occasions.  That being said, I hope
I didn't come off as defensive because that was not how I was intending to
sound, nor was I defending the decision of my school music department
because I think that in some ways the print-music readers have their own
advantages, but any materials that you know of that relate to this issue
would be very useful and much appreciated.

Thanks.

On 9/7/11, Debra Baxley <debrabaxley at att.net> wrote:
> These books can be borrowed from the Library of Congress:  Piano 
> Lessons, Level 1, and Piano Lessons, Level 3 has some embossed print music
in it.
> Also, try Note Speller Level 1.  All of these books are by the 
> Bastiens; they are In contracted Braille.
>
> Debra
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: menvi-discuss-bounces at menvi.org
> [mailto:menvi-discuss-bounces at menvi.org] On Behalf Of Kaiti Shelton
> Sent: Wednesday, September 07, 2011 4:21 PM
> To: menvi-discuss at menvi.org
> Subject: [Menvi-discuss] Learning Print Music
>
> Hi,
>
> I am currently taking my high school's theory course.  Last week my 
> instructor noticed that by using Lime to notate key signatures the 
> computer was doing the work for me.  (We were taking a quiz on writing 
> key signatures and my sighted classmates were held accountable for the 
> correct positioning of the accidentals on the staves).  To be fair to 
> the other students in the class, my teacher decided that from now on 
> he wants me to write out key signatures in a word document, with the 
> number of sharps or flats and their placement on the staff.  However, 
> having never read print music before I obviously don't know where the 
> accidentals should go.  If anyone could point me in the direction of 
> some tactile, braille, or text resources on the subject it would be 
> greatly appreciated.
>
>   P.S. If anyone knows of text resources that would explain any rules 
> about key signature placement for different staves that would be great 
> too, as we are using tenor, alto, and bass on a frequent basis 
> already.
> Thanks.
> --
> Kaiti
>
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--
Kaiti

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