learn to read music

I got a call the other day from a guitar player that had decided that he wanted to attend a Music School for college. When he went for his first interview they informed him that he would be sight reading music for part of his audition for entry into the school. Well this particular guitar player had taken lessons for 5 years and had never learned how to read music. Oh he could figure it out given enough time but that is not what the college was looking for. He said he had 6 months before his audition and could I help him to learn to read music.
The process of learning to read music usually comes about through the years as you lean to play the guitar. All though many instructors on the internet try to tell you learning to play the guitar can happen in a short time I can tell you that learning music is not a quick process. It takes time and practice.
I designed a plan for him and set him up on http://www.gtrteacher.com/ to learn from the very beginning. A plan I recomend to all beginning guitar students. I advised him to move through the lessons quickly so as not to memorize the exercises and to be sure he was reading the notes and not going by just the patterns. I will then give him new sheet music at each lesson to check his progress as we go along. Along with lots of practice and reading of new music I believe we can accomplish our task in time.
For the beginning guitarist learning the notes string by string not only teaches the student how to read music but also helps to understand music and rhythm. It also gives the new student a chance to strenghten their hands and create agility with their fingers at a steady pace. This is not a process that happens all at once either.
Remember practice and repetition are the keys to learing to play the guitar.

Six String Music is Good for the Soul