Here's what you need to know for this lesson: How Scales Work (Lesson #1) What the Major Scale is (Lesson #4) How Chords Work (Lesson #5) What a minor key is and where it comes from The difference between "parallel" and "relative" minor keysThe three different minor scales and why they exist What a Minor [...]
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JBT Music Theory Lesson #7 – Two-part harmonies
So I ran a poll on the sub-reddit, and this is what the people wanted! So here it is. So here's what you're gonna need to know in order to complete this lesson: What "harmony" meansUsing common Roman Numeral progressionsHow to use triadsHow to build melodies using scalesWhat counterpoint is and why it mattersWhat Intervals [...]
JBT Music Theory – Lesson #6: Chords pt. 2
What You Need to Know to Complete this Lesson: In order to complete this lesson, you're going to need to know the following stuff: How to figure out what key a piece of music is inHow to deal with triadsWhat a chord progression isHow to analyze a chord progression using Roman NumeralsWhat are some common [...]
JBT Music Theory Lesson #5 – The Pentatonic Scale
In order to do this week's lesson, here's what you'll need to know: What a pentatonic scale isHow to analyze a pentatonic melodyHow to find the difference between the major and minor pentatonic scales What a Pentatonic Scale Is If you've never heard the term "pentatonic" before, you're in reasonably good company... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pH9l8KlcuBA So, if [...]
JBT Theory Lesson #4 – The Playlist!
So when I'm putting together a lesson, I usually like to also create a playlist on Spotify to go along with it, and if I feel like it give an extra assignment for those folks who are, like, super overachievers. I think I'll go ahead and give a simple assignment this time--that is, if any [...]
JBT Music Theory Assignment #4: Major Scales pt. 1
In order to complete this week's assignment, you'll need to know the following things: What a major scale isWhat is tonic?What a "key" is, and how to find out what key you're inHow to analyze a melody by scale degree relative to tonic What a Major Scale is... As I've mentioned, a scale is a [...]
JBT Music Theory Assignment #3: Chords (pt. 1)
In order to complete this week's assignment, you'll need to know the following theory concepts: What a triad is How Triads Work How to Name a Triad What a chord progression is Common chords that aren't triads What a triad is A triad is, as its name implies, a three-note chord. Specifically, it is [...]
JBT Music Theory Assignment #2: Rhythm and Time Signature
I was incredibly, super impressed with all the work everyone submitted. It was really cool to get to hear what people have worked on, and I hope I get to hear even more! Before you get started on this assignment, you’re going to need to know the following terms: Rhythm Meter Time Signature / Meter [...]
JBT Music Theory – The Playlist!
So one of the things I wanted to do for this little online music theory course I'm coming up with is to create a playlist that goes along with each of the themes we're talking about here. It's taken me a little bit, I managed to get one together for the latest theme. So, let [...]
JBT Music Theory – Assignment #1: Melodic Contour
Here are some things you're going to need to know in order to do this assignment. If you already know them, great! If not, just keep reading. How Notes Work How Scales Work Melodic Contour Disjunct vs. Conjunct Motion What is a singable melody? How Notes Work You may know that, in "Western" music (which [...]
Marshall Escamilla 