Getting Started with Music Theory

 

Music theory helps you better understand what's going on inside the music.

Despite the name, there's actually nothing theoretical about music theory at all. In fact, it is immediately useful and highly practical. The study of music theory can help you unlock common patterns that appear frequently in the music you play.

If you do not yet know how to read music, we recommend you start with our beginner-level notation game Flash Notation (Notes):

Flash Notation (Notes)
All musicians - even those who mainly play 'by ear' - can benefit greatly from knowing at least the basics of reading music in standard notation. Flash Notation (Notes) will start you on the path to reading music by training you to quickly recognize the names of notes on the staff in treble and bass clef, and in all keys.

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If you would like to better understand the Circle of Fifths, we recommend Key Puzzles:

Key Puzzles
The Circle of Fifths is an important concept in music theory. A thorough knowledge of the circle will help you understand how keys (and chords) are related to each other. You will memorize relative major/minor keys, key signatures and chordal relationships. You will also hear how a chord progression of descending 5ths sounds in different musical styles.

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If you would like to get better at matching numbers to chords and scale degrees we recommend Number Blaster :

Number Blaster
A basic understanding of numbers as they pertain to scale degrees and chords is key to any study of music theory. It is also an highly practical skill used in many musical scenarios. In this game, have fun blasting the spaceships as you learn to quickly match numbers with tones and chords for any key, major or minor.

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