Michael Miller - Music Theory

No one likes a know-it-all. Most of us realize theres no such thinghow could there be? The world is far too complicated for someone to understand everything there is to know. So when you come across a know-it-all, you smile to yourself as they ramble on because you know better.

You understand that the quest for knowledge is a never-ending one, and youre okay with that. You have no desire to know everything, just the next thing. You know what you dont know, youre confident enough to admit it, and youre motivated to do something about it.

At Idiots Guides , we, too, know what we dont know, and we make it our business to find out. We find really smart people who are experts in their fields and then we roll up our sleeves and get to work, asking lots of questions and thinking long and hard about how best to pass along their knowledge to you in the easiest, most-accessible way possible.

After all, thats our promiseto make whatever you want to learn As Easy as It Gets. That means giving you a well-organized design that seamlessly and effortlessly guides you from page to page, topic to topic. It means controlling the pace youre asked to absorb new informationnot too much at once but just what you need to know right now. It means giving you a clear progression from easy to more difficult. It means giving you more instructional steps wherever necessary to really explain the details. And it means giving you fewer words and more illustrations wherever its better to show rather than tell.

So here you are, at the start of something new. The next chapter in your quest. It can be an intimidating place to be, but youve been here before and so have we. Clear your mind and turn the page. By the end of this book, you wont be a know-it-all, but your world will be a little less complicated than it was before. And well be sure your journey is as easy as it gets.

Mike Sanders
Publisher, Idiots Guides

Publisher: Mike Sanders

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Third American Edition, 2016
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ISBN: 9781465451675
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2015956733

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Contents

Introduction

Back when I was in high school and college (a long time ago, and getting longer every day), many, if not most, of my fellow students regarded music theory as only slightly more fun than listening to paint dry. I didnt share that opinion, and still dont; I think music theory is interesting and fun and an essential part of any serious music education.

Still, if all you live for is to play your instrument (or to sing) 24 hours a day, taking time out from practicing to move a bunch of notes around on paper might not be tremendously appealing. In fact, I believe introductory-level music theory classes are the second most-skipped classes in college music schools, with only music history classes being less well received. (Some enterprising soul is bound to combine the two classes into a Theory of Music Historyor History of Music Theorycourse, thus creating new levels of student apathy.)

Im not sure why so many budding musicians are so down on theory. Maybe its because of the way its presented. (Lets face it: Some instructors can be fairly boring when they present this material, and most music textbooks are stultifyingly dull.) Maybe its because of the way music theory resembles sentence diagramming and other dreary grammar-related stuff. I dont know; maybe to some people, it just seems like a lot of work.

But the fact remains: every musician needs to know some music theory. Thats a bold statement, and one that you might take issue with. After all, youve gotten this far in your music studies without knowing theorywhy do you need to start studying theory now?

Music Theory Is Important

Most musicians, if they want to communicate with other musiciansto play in a band, or teach them their songshave to know at least the basics about how music works. These basicsnotes, chords, and so onare what we call music theory.

Notes and chords are the building blocks of the language of music. Music theory defines the many different ways you can arrange those blocks into songs and compositions. Without the theory, all you have is noise; applying music theory, you can create great works of art.

Musicians apply music theory every time they sit down to play or singwhether they know it or not. When you read a piece of music, youre using music theory. When you write down a series of notes, youre using music theory. When you play a chord, youre using music theory. When you sing a harmony line, youre using music theory.

Even musicians who dont have any formal training use music theory. When they put their hands on the piano, they might not know that theyre playing a major ninth chord with the fourth in the bass, but they do know that those notes fit together well, even if they cant tell you why, or the strict chord construction.