I learned to read music as a student of, first, the chord organ then the double-keyboard organ. However, I would come home from a movie, with the music running through my mind, sit down at the organ and begin picking out those melodies, later finding the chords to go with them. I had a notebook for this. So, already I was comfortable with both. However, I might have been nervous if anyone had taken either type of music from me.

After a factory job, my Carpal Tunnel Syndrome worsened to the point where I no longer could play the organ. For years, I was without a musical outlet. I tried the guitar, pennywhistle and dulcimer, but I had troubles with all of them.

Twenty years later, I encountered the bowed psaltery at a Renaissance faire. The first time I held it, I could play a song ("The Silkie"). So, I splurged, hoping that I wouldn't regret it. When I opened the traditional songbooks I had used long ago, I was shocked to discover that I no longer could read music! So, I taught myself to do it again and began learning songs. Practicing in a local park, I had to struggle with setting up a book to learn songs from. One breezy day, I was tired of fighting with the pages and decided to try playing without looking at music. I could! Then, when I couldn't find the songs in print that I wanted to learn, I started listening to music and discovered that I still could play by ear.

I think it's handy to know how to read music, and it's wonderful to be able to play by ear. It's a plus if you don't need the sheet music/book in front of you. By the way: If you read music and are looking at a songbook, you mentally can sound out tunes or even compare versions.