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Where to learn music theory and harmony and not getting bored?

ism said:
(Which is not exactly cutting edge literary theory, but highly readable)
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I don't see a link, so have no idea what book you're talking about, but I believe that art is largely subjective. There is, however, a certain standard of competency and creativity needed to write a good book.
 
kessel said:
I started playing guitar and making music 30 years ago and as much as I love music I could never become friends with music theory.

Nevertheless I always wanted to learn some more theory, specially harmony, to improve my compositions and arrangement skills, but the main problem I've always found is that every way I've found so far feels pretty boring to me.
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You can learn about harmony without studying music theory as such. Since you are particularly interested in harmony, maybe the best way to learn more about it to copy how kids often learn stuff: they imitate. For instance, they learn language without being anyone explaining anything to them about language (they wouldn't have understood it anyway): they listen and imitate, and gradually figure out which words to use when. If you find some of your favourite musical pieces, and figure out (either by listening or by finding sheet music) - and keep doing that, you'll learn more about harmony, on your own premises. Doesn't matter if it's jazz or neo-classical or americana or something else, your repertoire of chords (and, important: voicing) will grow. If you learn new music regularly, the harmonic knowledge you pick in this process will gradually turn into something you will be able to use in your own music making.

Of course, if you want to figure out complex stuff, it will be helpful with a teacher, or YT-videos, or notated music. But te important parts are finding pieces that you find harmonically interesting – and that they are in a suitable level of complexity.
(@robgb: the book he linked to is 'How fiction works).
 
robgb said:
I don't see a link, so have no idea what book you're talking about, but I believe that art is largely subjective. There is, however, a certain standard of competency and creativity needed to write a good book.
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The link shows up fine for me, it’s James Woods “How fiction works”.
 
robgb said:
I don't see a link, so have no idea what book you're talking about, but I believe that art is largely subjective. There is, however, a certain standard of competency and creativity needed to write a good book.
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That's because of your adblocker (I have the same issue). You can quote such posts and will see a number there, that you can paste in the searchfield or a product URL on amazon (or whatever site it's for).
 
Just watched this video, and it reminded me of this thread. Oliver from Spitfire describes his process in producing a cue in which he tries to write in the style of Haydn. Really fun to watch, and explained very well.

 
Garry said:
It would be easy to recommend Rick Beato - probably the best subscribed music theoretician on YouTube, but personally, while I really like his channel and greatly support what he's doing, I often feel I need something intermediary to help me really fully appreciate the concepts.
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I just saw this. He's not at all what I'd call a music theoretician, he's a guy who calls attention to elements in songs that helped make them stand out.
 
Start with these:

Scoring the Screen : Andy Hill

Twentieth-Century Harmony : Vincent Persichetti

A Geometry of Music : Tymoczko

Music and Twentieth-Century Tonality : Paolo Susanni and Elliott Antokoletz

Audacious Euphony : Richard Cohn

Techniques of Twentieth Century Composition : Leon Dallin

The Evolution of 20th Century Harmony : Wilfrid Dunwell

Creative Harmony : George Frederick Mckay

Modern Harmony : A Eaglefield Hall


and when you've done those :

Harmonic Function in Chromatic Music : Daniel Harrison

Tonal Harmony in Concept and Practice : Allen Forte

Understanding The Leitmotif : Matthew Bribitzer-Stull

The Craft of Musical Composition : Paul Hindemith


Also these are free and fantastic : https://www.brianmorrell.co.uk/filmbooks.html


Hope this helps


best ed
 
ed buller said:
Start with these:

Scoring the Screen : Andy Hill

Twentieth-Century Harmony : Vincent Persichetti

A Geometry of Music : Tymoczko

Music and Twentieth-Century Tonality : Paolo Susanni and Elliott Antokoletz

Audacious Euphony : Richard Cohn

Techniques of Twentieth Century Composition : Leon Dallin

The Evolution of 20th Century Harmony : Wilfrid Dunwell

Creative Harmony : George Frederick Mckay

Modern Harmony : A Eaglefield Hall


and when you've done those :

Harmonic Function in Chromatic Music : Daniel Harrison

Tonal Harmony in Concept and Practice : Allen Forte

Understanding The Leitmotif : Matthew Bribitzer-Stull

The Craft of Musical Composition : Paul Hindemith


Also these are free and fantastic : https://www.brianmorrell.co.uk/filmbooks.html


Hope this helps


best ed
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How are you getting on with “A Geometry of Music”?
 
ed buller said:
love it !!!

e
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Is it useful in actual composition?

I find it an immensely compelling theory (and the first time i’ve encountered orbinfolds outside of quantum field theory).

If feels like it should be something that can inform day to day composition, but i suppose i haven’t got far enough into the analysis sections to really see it working. (Though it does provide a fascinating analogy of key and the formalism of Einstein’s space-time metrics, which is a new way to think about modulation).
 
well it allows you NOT to worry. But to be honest the big breakthrough for me was the connectivity of hexatonic poles and the use of the augmented chords. When you see that outside of conventional key structures and circle of fifths hierarchy you can navigate successfully through a tonal universe that can be understood by any listener it's very liberating

best

e
 
To my experience, finding an excellent private composition teacher is the key... Over the years I have read numerous composition, harmony, counterpoint, music form, etc. books and watched many videos on the subject of music theory, composition and the like, but having the guidance of a masterful composer that can explain things and help you develop the craft is for me the way to go. A very similar approach to the apprenticeship method that all the great artist around the world followed and that now a days it seems like a lost concept.

Kind regards,

Max T.
 
ed buller said:
well it allows you NOT to worry. But to be honest the big breakthrough for me was the connectivity of hexatonic poles and the use of the augmented chords. When you see that outside of conventional key structures and circle of fifths hierarchy you can navigate successfully through a tonal universe that can be understood by any listener it's very liberating

best

e
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Ed,

You posted this link to Chromatic Mediants a while back. I found it to be invaluable. Thank you.
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/musa.12106
 
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