Music Guides
How to Read Music
Reading music takes a minute to learn but a lifetime to master. Many people go to school for years to learn how to read music. Here’s a quick primer on reading music.
Learning to Read Sheet Music
Learning to read sheet music requires that you understand some basic definitions and terms which we will discuss in the next few paragraphs.
The Clef
Start out by identifying what is called the “clef”. The first symbol written on a staff (the five lines that make up a piece of music) is the clef, and it informs the music reader which lines and spaces on the staff correspond with which notes. This is the first step in music reading.
Key Signature
Next up, something called the “key signature”. Right next to the clef you found already is one or more symbols indicating “flat” or “sharp” notes. Musicians call this group of symbols the key signature. If there are no so such symbols, then the key signature is “natural” (neither sharp nor flat). It may take some time to be able to “read” a key signature, but it will become more important the more music you read.
Time Signature
How to Read Music
Now let’s move on to the time signature. To the right of the key signature, if any flat or sharp symbols are there to make up a key signature, is a strange looking number known as the time signature, or “meter signature”. It looks like two numbers on top of one another — think of it as a fraction. The top number in a key signature tells you how many individual “beats” are in a single measure (or “bar”) of music. As an example, if the time signature reads like this — 3 / 4 — there are three beats in each measure. See the three there? That’s how you know.
The bottom number in the time signature will tell you what “sort” of note equals one beat. This number can be a 4 (indicating a quarter note), a 2 (indicating a half note), or a 6 or an 8, each of which indicates that certain type of note gets the beat.
Reading Music
Now you’re ready for some rudimentary music reading — read the notes and rests (breaks in the music) as they relate to the time signature. All music pieces are read from left to right. The symbols on the music either represent notes to play or rests to take pauses during. Since rests mean you should be silent, they do not communicate a specific pitch for playing or singing — though they show up on the same place on the staff as a note.
Reading music gives a person a whole new world to exist in — almost everyone can read books, and many people can hum a tune, but few people have the ability to look at a piece of music and determine what that music sounds like. Scientists tell us that the ability to read music increases brain power, performance on tests, and could even play a role in sexual selection — all this adds up to one thing. You need to learn to read and play music. Reading music offers a person a lifetime of joy that not many experience, so pick up a score and trudge your way through as soon as possible. You’ll be reading complex operas and symphonies before you know it.
How to Dance Hip Hop
Dancing hip hop is a good way for somebody to look like a fool. But that’s because most people don’t practice how to dance hip hop before they do it in public. Once you learn how to perform hip hop dance moves and practice them in the privacy of your own home, you’ll impress once you hit the dance floor in the club.
Hip Hop Dance Lesson
Here’s the step by step method you use to learn hip hop dancing moves.
Don’t Try Old Dance Moves
If you know how to dance to other genres of music, don’t use those moves. You might as well be trying to sing instead of rap to a hip hop tune. Instead, chuck all you know about dancing aside and start fresh.
Practice at Home
Practice in the privacy of your own home. Don’t wait until you’re in the club to practice your hip hop dance moves. Instead, find someplace private, put on the hip hop music and practice while no one is looking.
This lets you explore your ability, find out what’s good and what’s not, and develop a new dancing style.
Find Your Rhythm
Find the bass beat of the music and dance to the bass beat. This lets you find a rhythm. Don’t listen to the melody. Don’t listen to the lyrics. Just find the beat and dance to the beat.
Watch the Experts Dance Hip Hop
How to Dance Hip Hop
Find BET on the television and watch the expert rappers and professional hip hop dancers do it the right way. Pick up moves and see what the standard hip hop dance looks like. You don’t have to mimic these people or execute every move the masters do, but you can learn something from watching others.
Repetition and Practice
Practice your hip hop dancing and improve through repetition. Like any other thing in life, you’ll get better by practicing your dance moves.
Watch Instruction Videos
If you’re still not getting the beat down, watch some hip hop dance instruction videos on YouTube or Hip-Hop-Dance-Videos Dotcom. Simply put “hip hop dance instruction” into the internal search engine on YouTube.
You’ll probably figure out a specific thing you’re doing wrong by watching instruction. If not, you may need to follow the instruction step by step, breaking down your hip hop dance moves and rebuilding your dance skills from the ground up.
Learn to Hip Hop Dance – Don’t Give Up the Dream
Keep trying to improve your hip hop dancing skills, until you don’t embarrass yourself on the dance floor. If lots of dance practice, mimicry and instruction doesn’t make you a hip hop dance freak, then you may never impress everyone in the club. But with practice, just about anyone can improve their hip hop dancing to the point they don’t embarrass themselves in the clubs.
More than likely, if you practice your dance moves, you’ll learn how to dance hip hop and make yourself more impressive than most when you and your friends go out dancing. There’s always someone who seems like a complete dance master out at the club, but there’s nothing that says you can’t be that person. You’ll have to practice like your preparing for a hip hop video to get that good, though. Good luck.