The 5 Major Benefits Of Studying Music Theory

Music theory is the study of the fundamentals of music. It covers concepts such as the elements of music, song forms, chord progressions, and harmonic functions. Studying music theory has many benefits for musicians and music students. We’ve compiled the top five that will have you reconsider giving music theory a shot.

5. Understanding What You’re Hearing

Studying music theory strengthens your understanding of music. Music theory helps you understand what you’re hearing or playing. You’ll learn why certain chord progressions sound pleasant, why some notes sound dissonant together, how rhythm works, and more. This knowledge deepens your enjoyment and appreciation of all styles of music. Music theory provides the language and tools to analyze and understand how any piece of music is constructed.

4. Improved Pitch

Theoretical music study also improves your actual musical skills. It helps with developing skills like ear training, sight-reading, and transcription. You’ll become better at identifying intervals, chords, and rhythms by ear. You’ll also become a stronger sight-reader as you get better at translating the symbols on a musical staff. Transcribing music, or writing out the notes you hear, also becomes easier with a foundation in music theory. These are invaluable skills for any musician to develop.

3. Higher-Quality Creativity

Think of knowing the rules before you break them! Music theory teaches you the conventions of harmony, rhythm, and musical structure. Once you understand these concepts, you can start bending or breaking the rules in new and interesting ways. Knowledge of music theory helps with improvising, composing, and experimenting because you understand the sounds and patterns you’re working with. Studying what already exists helps you create something new.

2. Better Communication With Other Musicians

A good grasp of music theory improves communication with other musicians. Music theory provides a universal language for all musicians. Once you know the names of notes, rhythms, chords, and other elements, you can communicate clearly with other musicians about what to play. This makes collaborating, composing, and improvising with other instrumentalists or singers much easier. You’ll have a shared understanding of how the parts of a musical piece work together.

1. Unbeatable Confidence

Music theory allows you to take on new musical challenges. A solid grasp of music theory basics prepares you to tackle more advanced musical skills and techniques. Things like sight-singing, arranging songs, orchestrating a piece for multiple instruments, and music composition become less daunting when you know the fundamentals. Music theory gives you the foundation to set out on new and more complex musical endeavors with confidence.

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