Sight-reading

This article is about sight-reading in music. For sight- 1.1 Sight-reading

reading of spoken text, see Cold reading (theatrical).
Sight-reading, also called a prima vista (Italian mean- People in music literature commonly use the term sightreading generically for the ability to read and produce
both instrumental and vocal music at rst sight ... the
conversion of musical information from sight to sound
(Udtaisuk 2005). Udtaisuk and some other authors prefer the use of the more specic terms sight-playing
and sight-singing where applicable. This dierentiation leaves a third, more restricted use of the term sightreading for the silent reading of music without creating
sound by instrument or voice.
Highly skilled musicians can sight-read silently; that is,
they can look at the printed music and hear it in their
heads without playing or singing; see Audiation. (True
sight-reading or sight-singingnot code-deciphering
is actually notational audiation.) Less able sight-readers
generally must at least hum or whistle in order to sightread eectively. This distinction is analogous to ordinary prose reading during the early Middle Ages, when
the ability to read silently was notable enough for St.
Augustine to comment on it (Manguel 1996). Franz Liszt
was famous for his capacity to play advanced piano pieces
sight-reading the notes.
The term "a prima vista" is also used, as Italian words and
phrases are commonly used in music and music notation.
To play a musical piece a prima vista means to play it
'at rst sight'. According to Payne (2005), the ability to
hear the notes on the page is clearly akin to music reading and should be considered a prerequisite for eective
performance.... Egregious errors can occur when a student, analyzing a piece of music, makes no eort to play
or hear the composition but mechanically processes the
notes on the page.

Caravaggio's Rest on the Flight into Egypt (159496)

ing at rst sight), is the reading and performing of a

piece of music or song in music notation that the performer has not seen before. Sight-singing is used to describe a singer who is sight-reading. Both activities require the musician to play or sing the notated rhythms
and pitches. Many believe that individualsight-singing
is the more challenging of the two, because the musicians
do not have any keys, frets or valves (on keyboard instruments, guitars, and valved brass instruments, respectively) to help them obtain the correct pitches. However,
diculty is related both to the instrument and the diculty of the piece itself. For instance, sight-reading on a
polyphonic instrument, such as the classical guitar, can be
more challenging due to the fact that the guitarist has to
read polyrhythms and polyphonic passages that can often
be played in dierent positions using dierent frets.

The ability to sight-read is important for all musicians,

even amateur performers, but with professional orchestra
musicians and session musicians, it is an essential professional skill. Some professional orchestras ask prospective
candidates for positions to sight-read orchestral parts.

1.2 Sight transposition

Main article: Sight transposition
Some musicians can transpose music during performance
to suit particular instruments or vocal ranges, to make the
playing of the instrument(s) or singing easier, or a number
of other uses.

Terminology
1

1.3

2 PSYCHOLOGY

Sight-playing

According to Udtaisuk, many [authors] use the term

sight-reading for instrumental sight-reading performance. However, Udtaisuk and some other authors
use the more descriptive term sightplaying (or
sight-playing) for instrumental sight-reading, because
sight-playing combines two unique skill sets: music
reading and music making.

1.4

Sight-singing

Some authors, according to Udtaisuk, use the term

sight-singing for vocal sight-reading. As with sightplaying, Udtaisuk advocates and uses the more descriptive term sightsinging for vocal sight-reading because
sight-singing combines sight-reading and singing skills.

Psychology

The ability to sight-read partly depends on a strong shortterm musical memory. An experiment on sight reading
using an eye tracker indicates that highly skilled musicians tend to look ahead further in the music, storing and
processing the notes until they are played; this is referred
to as the eyehand span.
Storage of notational information in working memory
can be expressed in terms of the amount of information
(load) and the time for which it must be held before being played (latency). The relationship between load and
latency changes according to tempo, such that t = x/y,
where t is the change in tempo, x is the change in load, and
y is the change in latency. Some teachers and researchers
have proposed that the eyehand span can be trained to
be larger than it would otherwise be under normal conditions, leading to more robust sight-reading ability.
Human memory can be divided into three broad categories: Long-term Memory, Sensory Memory, and
Short-term (Working) Memory. According to the formal
denition, working memory is a system for temporarily
storing and managing the information required to carry
out complex cognitive tasks such as learning, reasoning,
and comprehension. The paramount feature that distinguishes the working memory from both the long-term and
sensory memory is this systems ability to simultaneously
process and store information. The knowledge has what
is called a limited capacity, so there is only a certain
amount of information that can be stored and it is easily accessible for only a small window of time after it has
been processed, with a recall time block of roughly fteen
seconds to one minute.
Experiments dealing with memory span have been conducted by George Miller in 1956 that indicated, Most
common number of items that can be stored in the working memory is ve plus or minus two. However, if this

information is not retained and stored (consolidated) in

ones long-term memory, it will fade quickly.
Research indicates that the main area of the brain associated with the working memory is the prefrontal cortex.
The prefrontal cortex is located in the frontal lobe of the
brain. This area deals with cognition and contains two
major neural loops or pathways that are central to processing tasks via the working memory: the visual loop,
which is necessary for the visual component of the task
and the phonological loop, which deals with the linguistic
aspects of the task (i.e. repeating the word or phrase).
Although the hippocampus, in the temporal lobe, is the
brain structure most frequently paired with memories,
studies have indicated that its role is more vital for consolidation of the short-term memories into long-term ones
than the ability to process, carry out, and briey recall
certain tasks.
This type of memory has specically come into focus
when discussing sight reading, since the process of looking at musical notes for the rst time and deciphering
them while playing an instrument can be considered a
complex task of comprehension. The main conclusion
in terms of this idea is that working memory and shortterm memory capacity and mental speed are three important predictors for sight reading achievement. Although
none of the studies discredits the correlation between the
amount of time one spends practicing and musical ability, specically sight-reading prociency, more studies
are pointing to the level at which ones working memory functions as the key factor in sight-reading abilities.
As stated in one such study, Working memory capacity
made a statistically signicant contribution as well (about
7 percent, a medium-size eect). In other words, if you
took two pianists with the same amount of practice, but
dierent levels of working memory capacity, its likely
that the one higher in working memory capacity would
have performed considerably better on the sight-reading
task.
Based on the research and opinions of multiple musicians
and scientists, the take home message about ones sightreading ability and working memory capacity seems to
be that The best sight-readers combined strong working
memories with tens of thousands of hours of practice.
Sight-reading also depends on familiarity with the musical idiom being performed; this permits the reader to
recognize and process frequently occurring patterns of
notes as a single unit, rather than individual notes, thus
achieving greater eciency. This phenomenon, which
also applies to the reading of language, is referred to
as chunking. Errors in sight-reading tend to occur in
places where the music contains unexpected or unusual
sequences; these defeat the strategy of reading by expectation that sight-readers typically employ.

Professional use

Studio musicians (that is, musicians employed to record

pieces for commercials, etc.) often record pieces on the
rst take without having seen them before. Often, the
music played on television is played by musicians who
are sight-reading. This practice has developed through
intense commercial competition in these industries.
McNerney (2008), jazz musician, professor, and private
instructor, describes auditions for University of North
Texas Jazz Lab Bands as being almost completely based
on sight-reading: you walk into a room and see three or
four music stands in front of you, each with a piece of
music on it (in dierent styles ...). You are then asked to
read each piece in succession.

rhythmic groupings, themes, inversions, intervals,

etc.)
Ability to read and remember ahead of playing with
more and wider progressive xations
Aural imagery (ear-playing and sight-singing improves sight-reading)
Ability to keep the basic pulse, read, and remember
rhythm
Awareness and knowledge of the musics structure
and theory

Beauchamp (1999) identies ve building blocks in the

This emphasis on sight-reading, according to McNer- development of piano sight-reading skills:
ney, prepares musicians for studio work playing backing
tracks for pop performers or recording [commercials].
1. Grand-sta knowledge
The expense of the studio, musicians, and techs makes
sight-reading skills essential. Typically, a studio perfor2. Security within the ve nger positions
mance is rehearsed only once to check for copying errors before recording the nal track. Many professional
3. Security with keyboard topography
big bands also sight-read every live performance. They
are known as rehearsal bands, even though their per4. Security with basic accompaniment patterns
formance is the rehearsal.
5. Understanding of basic ngering principles
According to Frazier (1999), score reading is an important skill for those interested in the conducting profession
and Conductors such as the late Robert Shaw and Yoel
Levi have incredibly strong piano skills and can read at
sight full orchestral scores at the piano (a process which
requires the pianist to make an instant piano reduction of
the key parts of the score.

Grand-sta knowledge consists of uency in both clefs

such that reading a note evokes an automatic and immediate physical response to the appropriate position on the
keyboard. Beauchamp asserts it is better to sense and
know where the note is than what the note is. The performer doesn't have time to think of the note name and
translate it to a position, and the non-scientic note name
doesn't indicate the octave to be played. Beauchamp re4 Pedagogy
ports success using a Key/Note Visualizer, note-reading
Although 86% of piano teachers polled rated sight- ashcards, and computer programs in group and individreading as the most important or a highly important skill, ual practice to develop grand-sta uency.
only 7% of them said they address it systematically. Rea- Udtaisuk also reports that a sense of keyboard geography
sons cited were a lack of knowledge of how to teach it, and an ability to quickly and eciently match notes to
inadequacy of the training materials they use, and de- keyboard keys is important for sight-reading. He found
ciency in their own sight-reading skills. Teachers also of- that computer programs and ash cards are eective
ten emphasize rehearsed reading and repertoire building ways to teach students to identify notes [and] enhance a
for successful recitals and auditions to the detriment of sense of keyboard geography by highlighting the relationsight-reading and other functional skills (Hardy 1998).
ships between the keyboard and the printed notation.
Hardy reviewed research on piano sight-reading pedagogy Most students don't sight-read well because it requires
and identied a number of specic skills essential to sight- specic instruction, which is seldom given. A major chalreading prociency:
lenge in sight-reading instruction, according to Hardy, is
obtaining enough practice material. Since practicing rehearsed reading does not help improve sight-reading, a
Technical fundamentals in reading and ngering
student can only use a practice piece once. Moreover,
Visualization of keyboard topography
the material must be at just the right level of diculty for
each student, and a variety of styles is preferred. Hardy
Tactile facility (psychomotor skills) and memory
suggests music teachers cooperate to build a large lend Ability to read, recognize, and remember groups ing library of music and purchase inexpensive music from
of notes (directions, patterns, phrases, chords, garage sales and store sales.

9 FURTHER READING

Assessment and standards

In some circumstances, such as examinations, the ability

of a student to sight-read is assessed by presenting the student with a short piece of music, with an allotted time to
peruse the music, then testing the student on the accuracy
of the performance. A more challenging test requires the
student to perform without any preparation at all.
Washington State has piloted a classroom based assessment which requires 5th and higher grade students to
sight-sing or perform on instruments from sheet music
they have written. It is suggested that students use solfege
or numbering systems or ngering without instruments
as aids. 8th graders are expected to sing by sight: Students are asked to perform a sight-singing exercise of four
measures of music. Students will be assessed on their understanding of rhythm and steady beat and their ability
to perform in the designated key with accurate interval
changes, acappella.[1]
Many students and adults cannot sight-sing, and even
some professional singers cannot sing by sight. However,
in combination with an assessment which requires composing music on a sta as early as 5th grade, it is hoped
that such a requirement will raise arts achievement. Pilot
data show that many students can meet or exceed such
standards. Other states are evaluating possible performance assessments as well.
SASR, or Standard Assessment of Sight Reading, is one
of the few non-subjective sight reading evaluation methods. It was created with a scientic/electronic platform to
insure a non-subjective approach to grading and administering that test. It consists of several thousand pieces of
music over 80 graded levels of diculty that have been
reviewed by 135 teachers and students to ascertain the
correct diculty levels. Their scores were averaged electronically in order to insure a scientic approach to graduating the diculty levels of the music.
With the SASR test, individuals can see in plain terms
at what level they score on their sight reading. They will
be presented with a series of sight reading challenges at
various diculty levels. Using a unique algorithm, the
system will intelligently recommend the next sight reading test item to present. Each score is automatically calculated and averaged to give a score that represents the
students overall ability to sight read music on the piano. This represents the students individual SASR Score.
All of the grading is done by computer, so human error
is not part of the equation. Once a student or teacher
can assess their sight reading ability they can begin to
make signicant progress. It is a free test administered
at www.SightReadingTest.com.

Eye movement in music reading

Shape note
Subvocalization

7 Notes
[1] Arts Revised Classroom-Based Performance Assessment
(CBPA)"

8 References
Beauchamp, Laura (May 1, 1999), The 'Building Blocks of Reading: Suggestions for Developing Sight Reading Skills in Beginning Level College
Piano Classes, Piano Pedagogy Forum, Columbia,
SC: University of South Carolina School of Music,
2 (2), retrieved 2014-10-29.
Frazier, Ivan (May 1, 1999), The Well-Furnished
Keyboardist, Piano Pedagogy Forum, Columbia,
SC: University of South Carolina School of Music,
2 (2).
Hardy, Dianne (May 1, 1998), Teaching SightReading at the Piano: Methodology and Signicance, Piano Pedagogy Forum, Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina School of Music, 1 (2).
Manguel, Alberto (1996), The Silent Readers, A
History of Reading, New York: Viking.
McNerney, Kevin (May 2, 2008), My UNT Degrees Came In Handy Tonight, The Musings of Kev:
Random Thoughts and Rants from an Everyday Saxophonist (Blog).
MENC (2001), Careers in Music, Reston, VA:
MENC: The National Association of Music Education, archived from the original on October 15, 2007
Payne, Dorothy (2005), Essential Skills, Part 1
of 4: Essential Skills for Promoting a Lifelong
Love of Music and Music Making, American Music
Teacher, Cincinnati, OH: Music Teachers National
Association (published FebruaryMarch 2005)
Udtaisuk, Dneya (May 2005), A Theoretical Model
of Piano Sightplaying components (PDF), Diss. U.
of Missouri-Columbia, pp. 5455.

9 Further reading
6

See also
Ear training

Bower, Bruce. For Sight-Reading Music, Practice

Doesn't Make Perfect : Discovery News. Discovery News: Earth, Space, Tech, Animals, History,

5
Adventure, Human, Autos. Science News, 18 June
2010. Web. 15 Dec. 2011. <http://news.discovery.
com/human/music-sight-reading.html>.
Short-Term Memory and Working Memory Types of Memory - The Human Memory. The Human Memory - What It Is, How It Works and How
It Can Go Wrong. Web. 8 Dec. 2011. <http:
//www.human-memory.net/types_short.html>.
HAMBRICK, DAVID Z., and ELIZABETH
J. MEINZ. Sorry, Strivers:
Talent Matters. The New.
19 Nov.
2011.
Web.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/20/opinion/
sunday/sorry-strivers-talent-matters.html>.
Lee, Ji Ln.
THE ROLE OF WORKING
MEMORY AND SHORT-TERM MEMORY
IN SIGHT READING | Mendeley. Free Reference Manager and PDF Organizer | Mendeley. Mendeley, Sept. 2003. Web. 15 Dec.
2011.
<http://www.mendeley.com/research/
role-working-memory-shortterm-memory-sight-reading-4/>.
Working Memory Denition - Medical Dictionary Denitions of Popular Medical Terms
Easily Dened on MedTerms. MedTerms.com.
MedicineNet, 27 Apr. 2011. Web. 10 Dec.
2011. <http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.
asp?articlekey=7143>.

10

10
10.1

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