Music theory is the study of the structure
of music.
What does that mean?
Well, it means that when you learn music theory you are learning how to identify and describe
all of the elements that make musical sounds happen.
That means you learn about the elements of melody, harmony, rhythm, form, and texture.
Melody results when sounds of definite pitch are arranged in a manner that achieves a musical
shape or contour.
The musical shape is perceived as a unity
by the brain.
Melody is the horizontal aspect of music.
The melody can be enlivened through the use of rhythm.
Rhythm is an arrangement of varying sound durations.
These durations can be long, short, or many different combinations.
These durations occur through time.
The start of the rhythm is at time-point zero.
Melody and rhythm are combined together and occur together across this musical timeline.
Melody can be supported by harmony.
Harmony is created when musical sounds are combined and occur simultaneously.
It is the vertical aspect of music.
Musical form is the arrangement of music into chunks.
We determine form by looking at how the melody, harmony, and rhythm changes, or does not change,
throughout a piece of music.
Musical form can often be dictated by the
texture of music, that is, how the various
parts of the music interact.
A texture can be thin, like a single melody
being sung by one person, or dense, like an
entire orchestra playing at the same time.
Even just adding a simple harmony to a simple melody effects the texture of the music.
Often, when a big change in texture occurs, we are in a new section of the musical form.
These are the main elements of music: melody, harmony, rhythm, form, and texture.
But how do we even being to describe or talk about these elements?
We use music theory.
When learning music theory, we learn the musical grammar that musicians use to understand the
language of music.
It gives us the words and definitions of all
musical elements so that we, as musicians,
can discuss and understand music in a deeper and more meaningful way.
Understanding music in this way makes us better musicians.
We are able to analyze and interpret music in our performances.
We learn how to write about music in an intelligent manner.
We can apply this knowledge to writing and arranging music, and in learning about the
elements of music ourselves, we are preparing ourselves for any career in music, whether
it be performance, composition, business,
education, or any other field of music.
