How Long Would it Take You?

[_zedagive]

Started to learn this and began wondering how long others would take to get this one down. Watch and listen to the playing at the start of the video.

So how long do you think it would take you (Assume you dedicate 2 Hours per day). I mean being able to play it through with no mistakes (not necessarily without some slight buzzing or slight timing errors between notes/chords).

[Su_H.]

If this piece was the focus of my study/practice, I would say 2 to 3 weeks. The most difficult part for me would be committing it to memory.

[MakingMusic]

Originally Posted by Su_H.

The most difficult part for me would be committing it to memory.

I agree with Su. The most difficult part would be committing it to memory. The song itself is pretty straight-forward. Nothing tricky. I'd give myself 3 days, maybe 2.

[TBman]

I don't know. I'll see if I can get the notation and give it a try. Its a nice arrangement.

I can't memorize like I used to due to medical and age related factors, but what happens is I memorize the tune more or less from a listeners perspective and that enables me to play tunes fairly well after a while, but I sight read everything.

Another issue is getting family members to leave me alone for a couple of uninterrupted hours while I'm wide awake, lol. Chances of that are slim to none.

[rick-slo]

Right off technically. As others already said memorizing is the part that takes some time.

[DukeX]

A few days to learn it.

A few weeks to play it semi-well.

[_zedagive]

I think I feel better about my ability to learn new songs. I've been working on it for about 4 hours and have the first half almost down. The rest has some repetition, so it may come a little quicker.

I've always wanted to learn this piece and this arrangement is very nice and not as difficult s others I've viewed.

For those of you that responded <1 hour, that is pretty impressive!

[TBman]

I just played it through without mistakes a couple of times. It took me 1.50 hours.

Experience has taught me to let tunes like this jell for a few weeks to really sound good. Learning a tune to play it, is different from learning a tune so people can listen and enjoy it. There's a subtle "glueing" together of the notes that my mind and fingers do and it takes a while to set. Anyone else like this?

So in the poll I selected 1-2 days, which is 2-4 hours I guess, to get it playable, but not as entertainment for someone else.

[_zedagive]

Originally Posted by TBman

I just played it through without mistakes a couple of times. It took me 1.50 hours.

Experience has taught me to let tunes like this jell for a few weeks to really sound good. Learning a tune to play it, is different from learning a tune so people can listen and enjoy it. There's a subtle "glueing" together of the notes that my mind and fingers do and it takes a while to set. Anyone else like this?

So in the poll I selected 1-2 days, which is 2-4 hours I guess, to get it playable, but not as entertainment for someone else.

Ver impressive TB and I like your comments. I've been paying more attention lately to working on glueing the notes together as you stated. This is what makes a song really sing as compared to just hitting all the right notes.

Cheers!

[JonPR]

Took me 5 minutes to work out the tuning and play the first few phrases. I needed to slow down the youtube to be sure.

To get the whole thing down would probably take me more than two hours, but mainly because I'd want to transcribe it all first. (Notation too, because I like notation, although the tune's so familiar that tab would be enough - and the tuning also makes notation a little less intuitive.) That would probably at least two hours in itself.
I'd hate to have to memorise it all just from watching the video and copying it. Seeing it on paper - or rather on screen - helps me get the form in my head.

Then getting it all under my fingers ... that's a lot harder to say. Technically it doesn't seem too challenging, so if I was reading from music, I could probably play it all through - near enough in real time - once I had it transcribed.

Memorising is a whole other thing. That requires multiple run-throughs, and I wouldn't want to spend two hours every day on it. I'd probably spend maybe 20-30 minutes per day on it, max, and I might then have it in memory after a week or so. (Maybe less if there aren't too many varied sections.)

It's an interesting question, though, and I feel like making it a challenge...

EDIT: OK, I've got it transcribed in just over an hour. I'll need to leave it now, so I'll get back to you on following stages....

_____

Update. Next day. Another half-hour on it, fixing a few details on tab, checking fingering with original. Playing along with the original at 75% to start with. One or two tricky moments mean I can't quite get it to 100% atm. I'm guessing it would take another half-hour (minimum) of more focused work to get it to performance level - and a little longer than that to memorise it reliably and get it as smooth as he plays it. I probably wouldn't do this in one session, but come back to it over a few days, spending maybe 15-20 mins per day.
This is not a deliberate strategy - I just get a little bored working on the same thing too long - but I suspect the time between has some subconscious effect of helping the tune embed, as if my brain needs to process what's just gone into it. At least I find this works - I don't forget from day to day, I actually seem to remember better when I come back to it, as if my fingers (and brain) are now more ready than they were at the end of he previous session.

But one other thing. It occurred to me as I was transcribing it yesterday that it ought to work in DADGAD (which I'm more used to than DADGBD), and I tried that on my DADGAD guitar today too - just a few minutes. Some of it worked really well (better), one or two places not as well.

But then again - I'm tempted to re-arrange this my way. IOW, when I learn this kind of thing (cover of an existing song) I find my mind wandering. I know the song fairly well, and I know I could produce a similar arrangement - not necessarily a better one (this one is perfectly concise and economical) but one I might feel more relaxed about playing.

Just some insight into my working process, FWIW!

[joeld]

You people are way more talented than me! It takes me forever to learn a song, maybe two weeks for something like this one. And by then I've played it through so may times, I'm starting to forget some other hard-won song. Maybe I should give it up? Nope, it's still fun!

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by joeld

You people are way more talented than me! It takes me forever to learn a song, maybe two weeks for something like this one. And by then I've played it through so may times, I'm starting to forget some other hard-won song. Maybe I should give it up? Nope, it's still fun!

I'm not "talented" (by any usual definition of the term). I've just been doing it for a long time...

But yes, fun is what it's all about. When the fun stops, stop.

[rmp]

wouldn't take me too long, the problem would be for me, memorizing it so it would survive me not playing it for a few weeks.

hey maybe I'll try it and let ya know!


btw: That's a beautiful arrangement, agree with the artist of this arrangement, one of Stings best tunes.

The late Eva Cassidy probably did one of the best versions of this song I've ever heard.

[JonPR]

I actually think it is Sting's best song - although I haven't heard everything he's done. It sounds to me like one of those rare songs that just flowed out through a perfect moment of inspiration - I doubt he spent long on it (maybe more on honing the lyric than on the melody or chords).

IMO it has such a strong (and authentic) emotional charge that it risks sentimentality in treatment. His original is right on the edge - just within the bounds of safety - but I think Eva Cassidy's cover pushed it over the edge. She obviously had a beautiful voice, and sang it with respect and professionalism, but I can' t listen to her version, it makes me squirm. Too much sugar in the tea.... I don't blame her, because it is such a strongly affecting song - very hard to underperform it and allow the melody and lyric to speak without exaggeration. (But hey, I'm English, we're allergic to sentiment... )

The guitar arrangement obviously avoids gloopiness by having no words! But he's also kept it simple: melody and minimal bass accompaniment.

[Mark Bolding]

I put down 6 days or more but I'm not a huge fan of the song so I will never know for sure. I am a huge song of Andy of Shutup & Play though; he does some of the best lessons on Youtube I have found and I've learned a lot from him. I also enjoy the little background stories he starts the lessons with and his recorded sound is amazing!