More Music Theory Anyone?

[warb]

I am a new member and look forward to each Friday’s lesson. But I feel that Brian should include more about the notes and function of the notes during his lesson.

For example in the latest lesson EP122 @ 4:32 Brian lands of the octave E note, but
only identifies it as “second note fourth string”. Really? are the students that adverse to theory?

What do others think?

What does Brian think?

Thanks.

[Duffy P]

On the one hand, I think Brian should do what works for him, and this approach seems to be working for many people. On the other hand, and personally, I would be happy to see more, or even some nods to theory. For example, if you are going to teach alternating bass, it is helpful to identify the root, fifth, and octave. For a walking bass, it helps to show the scale on which the bass walks.

And I certainly wouldn’t mind hearing either the note, or the scale degree, that’s being played, instead of just the fret and finger positions.

[Maradonagol]

I am fortunate to have a great base in theory from my youth, and I am happy, for example, that Brian is now regularly saying “you should all know how to make an open E chord by now” instead of showing the fingering…..having said that, there are members of all levels at AM, from beginner to relatively advanced, each with different objectives and practice time, etc. so I think Brian has found a good balance in providing a service/content that can appeal to the mix and span that seems to be here, many of whom want to be able to play practically.

Would I mind more theory at critical points…no, could be good, but I have a base, although that’s not why I signed up, I’m here to learn an interesting new piece each week that forces me to practice and have an almost complete piece of music I can play, keeps me engaged and playing with an objective in mind.

Roberto

[charjo]

I think it is important to understand the patterns of intervals on the fretboard and to understand what degree of the scale you are playing within the box patterns. I have taken the time to work with fretboard diagrams and gone through basic music theory courses to understand scales and harmonizing scales and forming chords. I think all these things help me absorb Brian’s lessons much quicker and I would recommend it to everyone but many are not interested.
I agree with Maradonagol that Brian has found a nice balance to appeal to a broad range of skill levels. I am grateful for all the musical ideas and styles that Brian brings. I have found that all these ideas help me integrate the dry knowledge into something more meaningful. In short, I’m happy to learn those things in other places and am grateful for what Brian offers.
However, I have been on this site 11 mos and I see some movement toward a little more theory. I would like to know more about the chord progressions Brian uses in the backing tracks.
John

[Brian]

Great discussions here, so thank you to Warb for starting it. I am working on some courses for the site that will be additive material to the lessons, one of which is a music theory for guitar players. I want to make it practical though, to the world of guitar. Music theory is such a broad topic and can get pretty complicated, but I think a theory course as it pertains to guitar would be very valuable. Curious what your thoughts are?

That said, the lessons that I create each week end up being roughly 30 minutes each (2 parts), so that’s an hour of content, and adding theory on top of that can become cumbersome to some. I will, however, start working on adding a little more, finding the point at which I can still get away with it.

I can’t tell you how many people sign up and thank me for taking the time to say “2nd fret, 4th string”, those people convert because they can’t find lessons like that anywhere else. However, as many of you advance, I’m sure some of that minutia can be frustrating. This is why I’ve included the slow walk-through and on screen tab viewer content, so you can skip all of the discussion and get straight to the notes.

I think the solution would be this music theory for guitar player course that I can refer to in future lessons. So i’m not explaining the theory content, but referencing it in the course.

Another question I have. How many of you watch the lesson videos (Part 1 and Part 2) all the way through, versus skipping to certain parts, or skipping them altogether and going straight to the tab?

[charjo]

Brian,
I hang on your every word, once. It’s like my private lesson, after that I use your other assets.

Brian, when I did that G minor improvisation on the showcase, using double stop thirds, someone asked me how I did it. I asked your permission to post a video lesson on harmonizing thirds and you seemed happy with the idea. I fully intend to do it but other committments have gotten in the way. What about a new thread on the forum, “Showcase your theory”. If any of the members feel they have some useful theory teaching to pass on it could be found in one place.It’s obvious that video posting is really catching on and this could be a neat way for members to contribute. We could even have a resevoir of theory questions that people would like help with.
John

[Tremelow]

John, the “showcase your theory” idea is genius! That way Brian could continue with his lessons as before and devote more time to his other projects. I also agree with you and Maradonnagol on the current theory content weithin the lessons. He explains thoroughly how he applies theory in lessons. Each lesson that I watch teaches me a great deal how I can put theory into practice and that’s one of the reasons why I love this site so much. The others are the lessons themselves and this forum with its great people.

Knowing that Brian can impossibly cover every theoretical aspect in his lessons, I am also using additional resources.

Brian, I often watch your lessons several times from beginning to end. Not just once. I do it for two reasons: I realize that I tend to get things not quite right the first time. So it happened to me that I practiced my own version of a lesson up to perfection, only to see later it was different to the original. Still good, but not what you intended. Revisiting your lessons every now and then helps to correct my diversion. Another reason: I dont want to miss anything important. Sometimes a quick remark can be very important. 2×30 minutes by the way maxes out my attention span. More would be counter productive for me.

[Maradonagol]

Again Brian your suggestion of a theory course is good balance, like the blues lead course, etc. A component you can offer that people can choose to do in-depth or not, and that you can refer to without getting in the way of the weekly lesson content…adding interesting theory comments and pointers is fine during the lesson as long as that doesn’t become the core….that’s what makes AM different. BTW it doesn’t bother me at all that during a lesson you pull everyone into what position or key we are in, or string/fret…..

Totally agree with charjo, a theory forum section could be good!

Personally, I watch both videos through at least once, usually without a guitar the first time….and then again for any complex parts but skip any things that might be basic 2nd time around…my main learning is watching you, it sinks in faster for me, then I use the assets to get up to speed….my issues are normally not technical, but remembering the complete piece.

Thanks Brian

Roberto

Roberto

[Anonymous]

My father was a musician and as such wanted me to learn in a classical way. I began with the piano and felt excited by the feeling it gave me to play, even something really basic. Unfortunately I found the theory very difficult to grasp and eventually gave up my music lessons. Some 20 or more years later I felt the desire to pick up a guitar because I felt it would help me express myself. Finding this site and learning from Brian’s lessons has helped me to achieve things with my playing I never thought able to. Now I’m at the stage where I’m thinking another look at the theory would be a good idea. I’m sure Brian would be able to produce a course that was accessible to all. With regard to the lessons I have never learnt to play one piece the whole way through. I’m not saying that’s a good or bad thing but I prefer to cherry pick the licks, styles and methods that sound good to me and use them. All I do is free form playing and I think it’s the best. My playing does go through long periods of me just repeating myself but then I find something new and it just reinvigorates everything. I like this balance of learning in a way that does not stifle your excitement and at the same time gives you an entry point in to the rudiments. So I would say yes to the theory but with these points in mind.

[Badger (4FingerPhil)]

I picked up a guitar for the first time 3 years ago. I had absolutely no music knowledge whatsoever, but had always admired anyone who could play a musical instrument. I was never very academic at school , but good with my hands (a carpenter and joiner) so wondered if it was possible to learn from the Internet. After trawling YouTube I stumbled upon Brian and AM. Brian, your methods and the way you teach are just perfect and I feel I have made real progress with my dexterity as each of your lessons has a different skill, finger style, picking etc etc. I am desperate to learn some theory and get frustrated that my brain just does not grasp it!! Haha. but I would prefer it in another separate group of lessons, Thanks Phil

[Canada Moose]

Another great discussion and I’m so impressed with the engagement of the Forum members. It reinforces my feeling that I’ve finally found a place where people share my musical interests and issues.
As for theory, there’s just so much of it out there that it’s overwhelming. So I’m only interested in the parts that apply directly to any given lesson, and Brian often throws in a brief mention. For example, several times he adds a note beyond the pentatonic scale, and mentions the additional two notes in natural minor scale. That’s all I need to know to understand and run with that lesson.

I like the suggestion of Forum members submitting their own little lessons (like Charjo’s double stops) – maybe that could be a new Forum Category. I know I’ve got a few tricks that go over well, and I’d be glad to share them.

In the theory question, what I’d like to know more about is the relationship of target notes with the changing underlying chords. Like if we move to a IV chord, which notes of pentatonic scale are good choices at that point. Of course, I can work that out myself (and do) but some comments along the way could help me follow the lessons, beyond put your finger here. Understanding that relationship between target notes and underlying chords I think is a real key to great players like Clapton and Santana, who make it sound so easy because they know their options rather than just running riffs. That’s what I’d like to learn more about, and few mentions during the lessons would be helpful for me.

[scotty117]

Brian, i watch all parts of lessons all the way through at least once first. As for theory, i think Brian offers just enough within each lesson. He usually will say something like “first i will show you the notes, and then why they work or what pattern/scale they come from”. That to me is theory of that lesson. Sure there is way more theory than that basic amount, but that’s why i think a separate theory course is a great idea. Also, no matter how he does it, everyone won’t be pleased. Inevitebly, if Brian took a lot of time during the lessons to get deep into the theory of that particular lesson, some people will ask that he just get on with the next riff/note. So i think its perfect how it is now, but i would defenetly go through a theory course if one was available..scott

[Tim Lee]

I like the format that Brian has currently with his lessons. From what I have seen on the forum the majority of us want to learn a lesson and be able to play the lesson fully without getting bogged down with theory. A separate music theory course would be a good compromise. I chose to subscribe to Active Melody because of Brian’s excellent presentation skills and musical content and I enjoy the format as he presents it. ( just my two cents….for what it’s worth…)

[Canada Moose]

Two more thoughts:

First, no matter what Brian does, some will like it and others won’t. “That’s too simple, I already know it” or else “that’s too complicated, now I’m confused”. Since I’m learning so much already, I guess I’d say to Brian “keep on doing what you’re doing”. Maybe a separate Theory course, but as for the lessons, hey, they’re great as they stand. So maybe just let it be.

Second, I think we’re all getting a great deal, very high value for low cost, so it’s not fair to ask Brian for more.

This is hands down the best learning resource I’ve found, at a great price, so I wouldn’t ask Brian for more.

There’s a ton of stuff here that I’ve yet to work through. He’s a great teacher, there’s a ton of great resources, the rest is up to me to dig and learn the stuff. Brian, just keep on doing what you’re doing.

[old man]

I agree with Scotty117 and Canada Moose.I watch part one and two of every lesson. Being self taught,I never could seem to figure out how to get past first position until I found Brian’s lessons. I have been a member about one and a half years. I can’t believe how much I have learned by following his lessons in playing and theory.Brian’s teaching style has me learning little bits each lessons .Keep doing what you are doing!!

[Tim Lee]

Another quick thought on this subject – there are 110,000 subscribers to this site and typically the ones that post on the forum represent only a fraction of the total number of users so Brian must be doing something right without including a bunch of music theory in his lessons. If a music theory course is really warranted then perhaps a survey needs to be taken from all the subscribers and then a decision made as to whether a music theory course is needed.

[BluesierByGuitar]

@Brian, I generally just listen to the first part of the first video (the performance) and then work out what you’re playing. Sometimes I watch the rest of the first video to hear what inspired the lesson or how you ended up with the piece you posted. I rarely watch the additional videos you post even though I’m a fully paid-up member as I’ve been playing for a long time and the material and production is mostly straightforward.

I use the site to keep up my interest in playing as ill health has more or less stopped me playing out. I find the material you post each week to be interesting enough to make me pick up my guitar and figure out what’s going on without being onerous and it gives me a great deal of enjoyment and satisfaction to tackle something new each week.

I guess I’m not your typical member but I understand and am happy with the way you present your material. Sure I’d support a little more theory in the lessons because a little theory never hurt anybody but I wouldn’t be bothered if you just kept things the way there are. 🙂

Just my ramblings.

BBG

[warb]

Brian,
Thanks for you reply. Adding a “little more” would be great. I was not thinking of a full blown theory injection.

I check out your new lesson on my IPAD as soon as I see it (sans guitar). Then Friday night I spend an about an hour
working on the first part. I am a beginner and still have to work hard to follow some of the material. I use the tab to
clarify anything I don’t get from the lesson. Then later in the week I will review the lesson and have a crack at the
second part.

[Anonymous]

Music is an art and not a science.

[Author]

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