Music Theory - Basic Level, Music Theory Ebook Collection(1)
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Music Theory
Basic Level
June 2005
Introduction..........................................................................................................................................3
Intervals.................................................................................................................................................4
Theory.................................................................................................................................................4
Usage..................................................................................................................................................5
Chords....................................................................................................................................................7
Theory.................................................................................................................................................7
Triads..............................................................................................................................................8
Four-note chords..........................................................................................................................8
Usage..................................................................................................................................................8
The Major Scale..................................................................................................................................10
Theory...............................................................................................................................................10
Usage................................................................................................................................................13
The Minor Scales................................................................................................................................15
Theory...............................................................................................................................................15
The Natural Minor Scale............................................................................................................15
The Harmonic Minor Scale........................................................................................................16
The Melodic Minor Scale............................................................................................................17
Usage................................................................................................................................................17
References............................................................................................................................................20
2
Introduction
This document is part of a compilation of a series of threads that deal with music theory and that
were originally published by Eowyn on
www.mysongbook.com
. The compilation has been
reorganized into three separate documents:
Basic Music Theory Î this document
Intermediate Music Theory
Advanced Music Theory
This has been done for two reasons:
1. The size of one single file was too large for download
2. The material covered by the different topics is of varying levels of complexity and
targets different audiences.
The text of the original threads has been modified and/or extended in several places where it was
deemed appropriate for increased readability. The rather crude layout of the original text (due to
the limitation of the forum) has also been improved. Finally, the text has been proof-read by
Arnold and Blackiel.
This is by no means an exhaustive treatise about music theory and harmony. Much more
modestly, the purpose of this series of topics is to give those willing to better understand what they
are doing with their guitar, the ability to get this knowledge into a quick and concise form. The
underlying objective is lead work and improvisation in a rock music context (broadly speaking), but
most topics are of a more general nature and they can also easily be adapted to other musical
genres.
There are numerous books and web sites about general music theory and more specialised topics.
Interested readers will find a short reference list at the end of the document.
Copyright Notice
The information contained in this document and this document itself can be freely downloaded,
used and copied for private educational purposes
only
. Selling of this document is strictly
prohibited in all circumstances.
3
Intervals
Theory
Intervals arenÓt much fun to learn but they are essential and we'll need them:
in the context of scales
in order to define chords
to help in analysing phrases and solos
and most importantly, we absolutely need to know how to play them. So please, bear with me and
read on.
As you probably know, the whole western musical system is built on 12 notes:
C
C#/Db D D#/Eb
E
F
F#/Gb G G#/Ab
A
A#/Bb
B
Some points worth noting:
Some notes have two names (e.g. C# - "C sharp", or Db - "D flat"). This is required
for theoretical reasons that we will not go into but in practice they are one and the
same note.
This ordered sequence of notes is called a scale; this particular one is the
"chromatic scale". We'll get into scales in future topics.
Between any pair of consecutive notes in the scale above, there is an equal
distance of a halftone (H); two halftones form a whole tone (W). Because of that
equal distance of a halftone, this scale is called equal-tempered. Why there are
only twelve notes and why there is that equal distance of a halftone between any
pair of adjacent notes is a very complex subject that we wonÓt go into here.
The "distance" between two arbitrary notes is called an "interval". When the notes are played
sequentially, the interval is called "melodic". When they are played simultaneously, it is called
"harmonic".
The
name
of an interval depends on the number of notes it contains, including the end notes; for
example, the interval C - F contains 4 notes (C, D, E, F), and will be called a ÐfourthÑ.
The
type
of an interval depends on the number of H's and W's that it contains. An interval can be
"minor" (m), "major" (M) or ÐperfectÑ (P); in addition, intervals can be ÐaugmentedÑ (aug or # or
+) (raised by an H) or ÐdiminishedÑ (dim or b) (lowered by an H). When nothing is specified, the
interval is considered to be major or perfect.
Here's a table of the intervals you should know:
Name M2 2 m3 3 4 b5 5 M6 6 m7 7 8
Distance H W W+H 2W 2W+H 3W 3W+H 4W 4W+H 5W 5W+H 6W
Example C-
Db
C-
D
C-Eb C-E C-F
C-
Gb
C-G
C-
Ab
C-A
C-
Bb
C-B
C-C
The Ð8Ñ is not called a perfect eighth but a perfect octave or simply octave. Intervals can span
more than one octave. A "9th" is a 2nd an octave higher, an "11th" in a 4th an octave higher and
a "13th" is a 5th an octave higher. I've never seen intervals larger than a 13th being used in
practice... and in blues and rock music, you'll rarely need more than the m7.
4
And finally this: make sure you know the difference between a "chromatic" H and a "diatonic" H:
A chromatic H is when you raise (or lower) a note by an H without changing its name. For
example, C - C#, Db - D, Gb - G, A - A# are all chromatic intervals.
A diatonic H is when you raise (or lower) a note by an H and change its name. For
example, C - Db, C# - D, F# - G, A - Bb are all diatonic intervals.
Please note: C - C# is musically identical to C - Db... but not theoretically. Damn theorists!
Usage
We'll use intervals a lot when we'll talk about chords and scales.
In standard tuning a guitar is tuned EADGBE from 6
th
string to 1
st
string (the 6
th
string being the
low thick string). Interval-wise this means that between any two adjacent strings the interval is a
perfect fourth (4), except between the G and B string, where there it is only a major third (3).
As you probably know, whenever you move up (or down) by one fret on the fret board, the
corresponding interval is an ascending (or descending) H. A distance of two frets on the fret board
corresponds to a whole tone (W).
As a guitarist (especially lead guitarist), you have to be able to instantaneously locate the m3, 3, 4,
5 and m7 with respect to any given note anywhere on the fret board. You will need this for fast
and correct soloing!
LetÓs assume you are currently playing the 5
th
fret on the A string (thatÓs a D note), and letÓs take
that as the basis for our intervals:
playing the note one fret higher gives you an D# note (or Eb); two frets higher
gives you an E; one fret lower gives a Db (or C#); two frets lower gives a C.
playing the 5
th
fret on the D string represents a 4, and the resulting note is
a G; playing the 4
th
fret on the D string results in a 3, and the note is an F#.
Playing the 3
rd
fret on that string produces a m3 (an F).
playing the 5
th
fret on the G string (thatÓs two strings away) produces a m7 (a D)
The following diagram represents all this information graphically. This diagram is valid anywhere
on the fret board, as long as you stay ÐunderÑ the B string.
:
5
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