Helping Tonebase
Can we get the teacher/community involved to help out Tonebase? It seems that there is a large number of incorrect scores that is being taught by the instructors on Tonebase. The displayed score either on the split screen and the downloadable sheet music often do NOT match how it is played. Often times, it is completely far off and so it seems that Tonebase needs the help of the instructors to get it right. Let me list a few: BWV998 by Judaciel did not match (but later corrected to a certain degree), Choro de Saudade by Sabrina does not match, Julia Florida does not match. So these were the first three lessons that I tried to follow, and it so happens that all three do not match the lesson. It suggests that most then are likely to be wrong. I don't see why it is so difficult to scan what the instructors are playing onto the split screen. If that can't be done, some quality control should be there to verify that at least the positioning is somewhat similar. These mismatchs between the performance and scores, really detracts from the point of this site.
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Good initiative KA ! I personally haven't noticed major discrepancies that disturbed my experience much, but I haven't seen the videos you mention; I think I have only seen videos with fixed or standardised scores. Bach transcriptions vary, as do different editions of Barrios pieces. Although it would ideal, I imagine scanning is impossible legal reasons because of copyright issues, but it is very reasonable to expect that if the score is there at all, that it should at least be correct to what the instructor has.
Hopefully, seeing as Tonebase make their own versions of the scores, they can edit and correct them for us as necessary. And maybe we can use the message button in the bottom right corner to help.
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As you can see, both scores are different (see 3rd bar). The downloadable score fingering is also probably not correct, it requires a jump from the 6th string 5th fret and immediately to the 7th fret on the 5th string. Normally such fingering never occurs as the transition is awkward. Sabrina plays it (based on the replay of the video) as the open 5th (G) then 7th fret on the 5th string to D and then the rest on the 4th string. Her version is different than what is posted on the split screen and on the downloadable score. If Tonebase is even able to make a split screen of the score using a published version, then I would imagine they could do the same for the score that is being used by the instructor.
Moving forward, I'd like this issue (and all of the other lessons) fixed and to ask that the split screen and the downloadable score be the same as the instructor's score. Otherwise, we have 3 different versions, and that really takes away a lot from the point of the lesson (I believe technique and interpretation are linked).
Thank you for reading.
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Hi Ken! Thank you so much for calling that mistake out. With the Volume of our output sometimes little mistakes like this happen, which is no justification of course and we're extremely grateful for bringing this to attention so we can improve upon it.
Our publishing team is currently working to get this solved asap! I do want to assure you that generally, we try to be as consistent with the artist's indications on the scores as possible, however want to thank you for your initiative to help us sort out any mistakes you and other users might find in our scores!
So yeah - let's definitely use this thread, to collect all and any such mistakes (while our team performs a large internal audit) to make sure your and other user's tonebase experience doesn't suffer from errors on our end. Should you find any more of these, please don't hesitate to post them here! :)
Thank you once more!
Cheers!
Igor -
Hello Ken!
Thank you for bringing this up. I just wanted to second Igor's comment that this process is very much underway for all new and existing scores on the site.
Often, we can't display the exact editions, as Roni Glaser mentioned, due to copyright. Almost one year ago, we set out to solve this problem and help the tonebase community by making our own editions. A massive undertaking, but a top priority!
Feel free to reach out with any questions here.- Trevor
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I realize that EXACT transcriptions aren't always possible. But I am hoping that at least the positions are correct, and in one instance, the key signature. Choro de Saudade and Julia Florida tutorials have transcriptions with completely different positions on the fretboard. Perhaps to very advanced and professional folks this might not sound like a big deal, but for hobbyist like myself, it is incredibly frustrating because I have to try to reverse engineer based on the video while looking at the split screen that has it being played on different strings and at different positions on the fretboard. So far, 3 out of 3 tutorials that I just happen to stumble upon have such mistakes. It is even more frustrating when the teacher talks about interpretation in which the phrasing is largely dependent on the fingering. So, in my opinion, it is something important that I do not see being addressed despite it being a "top priority."
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igor ...the topic is unfortunately still very topical
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Ralf I just read through this thread for the first time. This has never been problem for me, and I’m no professional, just a hobbyist. For me, the biggest takeaways of the lessons are the interpretive approaches of the instructors, not the details of where exactly to place my fingers at every moment. One of the things I like about TB is that lessons don’t just go through a piece note-by-note, telling me where to put my fingers.
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Eric Phillips I agree with Eric - I don’t find this to be a problem. (I generally use my own scores anyway.) The point of the video lessons, for me at least, is not so much to learn new repertoire as to to get a professional player’s approach to a particular piece of music. Like Eric, I neither want (nor need) to be told where to place my fingers. Someone who expects as much is not, I suspect, ready for a piece like the ‘Choro de Saudade’. Perhaps what ToneBase might offer is more lessons focusing on pedagogical repertoire. (There are some already, but perhaps there is a need for more.) Which reminds me, what has become of the ‘level’ system? It seems to have disappeared.
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