Music Theory

[Vexille]

Theory is a language to let you communicate with other musicians. It's a set of rules that, when everybody involved in the music follows, can play with each other and have it sound like it fits. It explains why things sound the way they do. Why some notes work well together to create a certain vibe and others don't.

For example if you go to a jam and they say play on this type of scale in that key and when I do *this* change to this other key. It lets you improvise within those boundaries and still have it be relevant to what the other musicians are doing.

Or better yet, if you can sight read you can whip out a piece of sheet music and pretty much be able to play the song right off the bat. You don't have to take time to learn the song because you already know the language it's written in.

Obviously it helps with the creative process as well. It's only going to be restrictive if you let it restrict you. Some people are comfortable having a set of rules and rarely breaking them. Others are cool knowing the rules but not abiding by them.

[why]

Think about it this way:
A little knowledge of chemistry can inform your cooking skills to a great extent, and help you when preparing a meal, but its not the chemistry that will make you a great chef. It's personal taste, experience, etc.

(Also, first post on this forum! woot.)

[2020k]

Welcome to the forums and I agree 100% with what you said!

I just started learning how to play piano and am taking voice lessons. I feel like without music theory structure, I'd hardly be able to grasp what I'm doing with these instruments. I'd be producing notes and not understanding why certain notes sound horrible when pressed together and why they sound fantastic.

It's good to have at least some knowledge.

[Beacon]

I've been thinking a lot lately about whether I should commit to learning more music theory or not. I don't know very much, and I usually don't apply it when I'm writing music. As soon as I bought my first instrument, a guitar, I wrote a song on it and it turned out great. I really like the music that I wrote before I had a clue what I was doing.

If you are a solo composer, I think it's really important to internalize music and to recognize the patterns in your own way. You don't need words to explain to yourself how different patterns of notes make you feel, but words are necessary if you need to communicate with others.

I'd really like the chance to ask more successful musicians about this. The fact that RDJ didn't have any musical training is almost enough to make me want to stay away from theory. Maybe he taught himself a lot of theory though, who knows?

I feel like without music theory structure, I'd hardly be able to grasp what I'm doing with these instruments. I'd be producing notes and not understanding why certain notes sound horrible when pressed together and why they sound fantastic.

I know what you're saying, but music theory doesn't really explain "what you're doing". What you're doing is playing a bunch of sounds with different textures and fundamental frequencies. Through evolution and socialization, we have built emotional connections to certain combinations of frequencies. Music theory attempts to map these connections, but ultimately, your emotional reaction to music is personal and dynamic. Music theory doesn't explain why certain cultures have developed certain emotional associations with certain sets of frequencies. It doesn't explain why some things sound good and why some things don't, it just tries to describe what sounds good and what doesn't.