Course Highlights
  • Read Music Using Proven Techniques
  • Understand All the Symbols (Not Only the Notes) of a Music Score
  • Read, Play, and Count Rhythms Accurately
  • The elements of the Score
  • Pitch Names
  • Pitch Classes
  • Octaves
  • The White Keys
  • The Black Keys (not the band!)
  • Half-Steps and Whole-Steps
  • Clefs
  • Intervals
  • Naming Octaves
  • Identifying Notes on the Staff
  • Identifying Notes on the Keyboard
  • Beat and Beat Divisions
  • Tempo
  • Downbeats and Upbeats
  • Dotted Rhythms
  • Time Signatures
  • Ties
  • Accidentals
  • Form in Music Notation
  • Chromatic and Diatonic scales
  • Ordered Pitch Class Collections
  • The pattern of a Major Scale
  • Scale Degrees
  • Solfege
  • Writing melodies with major scales
  • Analyzing melodies
  • What it means to be "in key"
  • Key signatures
  • How to identify key signatures
  • Popular song analysis
  • Building triads (chords)
  • Diatonic chord progressions
  • Roman numeral analysis
  • Inversions
  • Finding chords by formula
  • The thirds inside of a chord
  • Finding fifths by finding thirds
  • Diminished triads
  • Augmented triads
  • Chords on the guitar
  • Full Analysis: Canon in D (Pachabel)
  • Full Analysis: Minuet in G (Bach)
  • 7th Chords
  • Major 7th Chords
  • Minor 7th Chords
  • Dominant 7th Chords
  • Tendency Chords
  • Using the Circle of Fifths for Songwriting and Composition
  • Borrowing from Closely Related Keys
  • Scale Degree Names
  • Tendency Tones
  • Compound Meters
  • Compound Meter Signatures
  • Reading and Writing Compound Meters
  • Triplets, dubplets, and Quadruplets
  • Finding Minor keys by alternations to Major
  • Patterns in Minor keys
  • Relative Minor keys
  • Parallel Minor keys
  • Minor keys in the Circle of Fifths
  • Using Minor Keys for Songwriting and Composition
  • Diatonic Chord Progressions in Minor
  • The V Chord and Minor and the Leading Tone Problem
  • Harmonic Minor Scales
  • Melodic Minor Scales
Curriculum

8 Topics
Welcome & Overview
My Approach To Music Theory
Tools You Will Need For This Course
Update! MuseScore 3.0
Download: Staff Paper
About Notation Software Programs
Asking Questions
A Really Big Table of Contents

5 Topics
The Elements of the Score
Pitch Names
Pitch Classes
Octaves
Worksheet No. 1 (DOWNLOAD)

6 Topics
Why We Use a Keyboard
The White Keys
The Black Keys (Not the band...)
Half-Steps and Whole-Steps
A Little Review of What We've Learned So Far
Worksheet No. 2 (DOWNLOAD)

8 Topics
Staff Overview
Clefs
Treble Clef Refresher
Naming Notes and Intervals
Octave Names
UPDATE: Naturals
Update: Key Signatures
Worksheet No. 3 (DOWNLOAD)

9 Topics
Rhythmic Subdivisions
Download: A helpful PDF
Dots
Rests
Time Signatures
Ties
UPDATE! Triplets
Languages
Worksheet No. 5 (DOWNLOAD)

4 Topics
Dynamics and Repeats
Accidental Behavior and Naturals
Form
Worksheet No. 6 (DOWNLOAD)

3 Topics
Places to Find Scores Online
Tips for Practicing Notes and Rhythms
A Bunch of Practice Music! (DOWNLOAD)

1 Topic
Thanks & Bye! (For now!)

3 Topics
Welcome & Overview
Tools we will use in this course
DOWNLOAD: Staff Paper

4 Topics
What are scales and why do we care?
Definitions: Chromatic and Diatonic
Ordered Pitch Class Collections
Chromatic Scales

5 Topics
The Whole-Half Pattern
Scale degrees and Tonic
Scale Degrees and Solfege
How to Practice
DOWNLOAD: Worksheet No. 1

4 Topics
Using major scales (writing a melody)
Melody Analysis
What does it mean to be "in key"?
DOWNLOAD: Worksheet No. 2

4 Topics
Major Key overview
What is a key signature?
Identifying key signatures
DOWNLOAD: Worksheet No. 3

9 Topics
What are chords?
Song analysis
Triads
Building Triads
The Diatonic Chord Progression
Inversions
Roman Numerals
Song analysis version 2
DOWNLOAD: Worksheet No. 4

5 Topics
The inside of a triad
The third holds the power
Finding chords by half-step
Finding fifths by thirds
DOWNLOAD: Worksheet No. 5

5 Topics
Diminished Triads
Augmented Triads
Adding more octaves to triads
Chords on the Guitar
DOWNLOAD: Worksheet No. 6

9 Topics
Analysis Overview
Analysis: Canon in D (Pachabel)
Non-Chord Tones
Minuet in G File
Analysis: Minuet in G (Bach) - Part 1
Analysis: Minuet in G (Bach) - Part 2
Analysis: Minuet in G (Bach) - Part 3
DOWNLOAD: PDF of full Analysis
DOWNLOAD: Worksheet No. 7

8 Topics
What are 7th Chords?
The 4 Types of 7th Chords
Major 7th Chords
Minor 7th Chords
Blues and the Dominant 7th Chord
DOWNLOAD: PDF of Minuet in G including 7th Chords
7th Chord reference sheet
DOWNLOAD: Worksheet No. 8

2 Topics
What comes next?
Thanks & Bye!

3 Topics
Welcome & Overview (Part 3)
Tools We Will Use in this Course
[DOWNLOAD] Blank Staff Paper

3 Topics
Keys and Key Signatures
Diatonic Chord Progressions
Tendency Chords and the V Chord

3 Topics
The Circle of Fifths
Using the Circle of Fifths for Songwriting and Composition
Borrowing from Closely Related Keys

4 Topics
Why Do We have Scale Degree Names?
The Scale Degree Names
Tendency Tones and Direction
[DOWNLOAD] Worksheet No. 1

5 Topics
Definitions of Compound Meters
Compound Meter Signatures
Another Perspective
Example Piece
[DOWNLOAD] Worksheet No. 2

3 Topics
Triplets: When Rhythms Don't Fit Into the Grid
How Triplets Work
Other Tuplets

9 Topics
Minor Keys Overview
Alternations to Major
Whole-Half Pattern
Relative Minor
Parallel Minor
A Few Bonus Videos
Natural Minor Scales
Keys and Scales
[DOWNLOAD] Worksheet 3

3 Topics
Minor keys and the Circle of Fifths
New Circle of Fifths Graphics
More Options for Closely Related Keys

5 Topics
Why we care about Diatonic Chord Progressions
The Pattern
Diatonic Chord Progressions in Relative Keys
Diatonic Chord Progression in Minor - The V Chord and the Leading Tone
[DOWNLOAD] Worksheet No. 4

6 Topics
The Three Types of Minor Scales
The Harmonic Minor Scale
The Melodic Minor Scale
Example: Greensleeves
Comparing the Harmonic and Melodic Minor Scales
[DOWNLOAD] Worksheet No. 5

7 Topics
Analysis Overview
[DOWNLOAD] Greensleeves Score
Greensleeves Analysis
[DOWNLOAD] PDF of my Analysis
[DOWNLOAD] The Scientist Score
The Scientist Analysis
[DOWNLOAD] PDF of my Analysis

4 Topics
My Latest String Quartet
What next?
Thats all for now!
Bonus Lecture: Discount Offers & Mailing List

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Music Theory Comprehensive Complete! (Parts 1, 2, & 3)

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