Music Student 101

Sometimes you will encounter notes that don't belong to the chords they are sounding over. These notes are just what they sound like, nonchord tones! In this episode, we will discover the main types o...

We've learned about the major and minor scales. Now it's time to explore the 7 Diatonic Modes: Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian and Locrian. We will learn how to construct them an...

The bass has a special effect on the listener. The frequencies in the lower register can often be felt just as much as they are heard. The bass can tell us more about harmonic progression and it can a...

When writing a song or a piece of music, it's good to know how certain chords and harmonies work together. An understanding of the circle of fifths can make this fairly simple. In this episode we will...

MIDI is one of the greatest things to happen to music and those who work with it. This music based language allows for the entry and edit of musical notes and their attributes. It also allows for the ...

A melodic dictation exam is something you may or may not have to reckon with in your musical journey. Passing this course is essential for a music student working towards a degree. But for anyone, aca...

One big goal in tonal composition is to have good counterpoint within your harmonies. To do that, we need to learn how to approach part writing in the proper manner. To do that, we must first learn th...

There's no better way to get your performance feet wet than playing in a cover band! The material is there. You just have to learn it and execute it properly. The crowd will immediately connect with y...

An understanding of form and analysis can be a great aid in getting to know music better. Like an architect, a composer will structure their music on a foundation of building blocks. It's time to chec...

A piece of music is often laid out like a poem or a story. The sentences and paragraphs can be likened to motives and phases. The punctuations and ends of these thoughts can be likened to the cadences...