Do you think music theory for guitar can’t be fun, useful, or effective?
I had similar beliefs for more than a decade. Then I realized I was approaching music theory in a way that was not only boring, but also ineffective for me as an aspiring rock guitarist.
While studying for my Grade 7 music theory exam, it dawned on me that learning music theory in a purely academic manner was forcing me to learn a lot of topics that had little relevance to my guitar playing.
The Tenor Clef?
Do I really need to learn how to transpose music in the tenor clef, which a guitarist will never use?
Figured bass?
Shouldn’t I be learning more useful skills than a system used to notate music during the Baroque period?
And did I really need to memorize all those words in Italian, German, and French?
I was done with music theory exams and the traditional method of learning theory, but not with music theory itself.
I recognized the importance of music theory to my guitar playing and musicianship and was not about to give up on it.
Since then, I’ve developed a method of learning music theory that is less formal, more enjoyable, and directly improves my guitar playing.
It’s also quite simple.
3 Steps for Learning Any Music Theory Concept
When studying music theory the old-fashioned way, not everything was irrelevant to guitarists, and as a result, I learned how the basic elements of music work.
However, the process went like this:
Step 1: Understand a music theory concept (such as how the natural minor scale is constructed).
Step 2: Perform many exercises and drills to thoroughly understand the concept (for example, construct the natural minor scale in every key).
Step 3: Move to the next topic.
The first step in the process I use nowadays is similar. Before you can apply a concept, you must first understand it.
However, the process shifts from there.
Let’s get to it. Throughout, I will be using the natural minor scale as an example.
Step 1: Understand the concept.
The first step is to understand how things work.
If the topic is the natural minor scale, the following are the most important things to understand:
- The role of scales in music
- The relation between the major and the minor scale (relative vs parallel minor)
- How the natural minor scale is constructed.
- The key signature for each of the twelve minor keys.
Once you’ve grasped the concept, doing some exercises (on music sheets or notation software) can help you fully understand it.
Think of it like you’re incorporating Step 2 with Step 1 of the academic approach.
In the case of the natural minor scale such exercises could include constructing it in each key, and identifying the relative and parallel major scale of each.
Unlike the academic approach, we won’t be moving to the next topic though.
In fact, the next steps are where music theory starts getting fun.
Step 2: Absorb it
What’s the use of knowing how to construct the minor natural scale, without knowing how to easily find it on the guitar?
As a guitarist, it’s of no use at all.
Thus, the next step would be learning the natural minor scale pattern on the guitar in one position on the fretboard, and then marinating yourself in it.
These are some things you can do to get to know a scale very well:
- Memorize it by playing it up and down
- Apply scale sequences
- Double pick each note
- Play the scale in varying rhythms
- Apply different dynamics (ex: accenting each second note)
- Play the scale with your eyes closed
- With and without a metronome
- Sing it
- If you’re an intermediate guitarist, you can also play it legato – picking only the first note on each string and playing the rest of the notes with hammer ons and pull offs.
During this process you will reap many benefits that aren’t even related to the scale. For instance, double picking improves your two hand synchronization, varying rhythms will improve your rhythmic skills, and so on.
However you will also have learned the scale up to a level that it can be put into practical use.
One last note before we move to the next and most enjoyable step – using the music theory item you have just learned.
You do not need to know everything before proceeding to the next step. For example, you don’t have to know all of the natural minor scale patterns on the fretboard.
Since your goal is to absorb a concept, going through this process in only one scale position is enough. You’ll want to learn the other patterns later so you can solo freely across the fretboard, but don’t wait until then to start using the scale.
Step 3: Use it
The final step in truly understanding a music theory concept is to apply it in practice by making music.
If you’ve never improvised or composed before, this may seem like a big step, but it doesn’t have to be.
Since you’ve absorbed the concept, all you need to do now is make it musical, such as by writing guitar riffs and licks.
Play with the order of the notes in the scale, the rhythm, and phrasing techniques like slides, string bends, vibrato, hammer ons, and pull offs to transform what you’ve learned into real music.
This lesson walks you through the process step by step.
A word of caution
The process described above is the one I use today and have been using for over a decade.
However, I have to acknowledge that having previously studied music theory the academic way provided me with a structured approach to learning the subject that you would not have if you haven’t learned the basics.
Thus, rather than learning random concepts and applying them in practice as described above, I recommend that you also follow a music theory book, such as this one, so that you can also benefit from learning music theory in a structured way.
A final piece of advice
A book or a course will show you music theory in a linear way, however it’s also important that you go back and forth between new and older concepts and use them again and again in different forms and variations.
For instance, if you have learned the natural minor scale, you would have learned new phrasing techniques, rhythmic patterns or even built your speed on the guitar, you should go back to it and create licks and riffs that use the new musical elements you have learned.
Remember that the ultimate goal of music is to express and connect emotions, and music theory should be studied primarily to help you achieve that goal.
Thus, once you’ve gone through the three steps and truly internalized a concept, it should not be stored like an item in a collection, but rather used whenever it’s necessary to express your emotions.
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