Most Popular
1500 questions
18
votes
6 answers
What are the specific progressive steps to take in basic ear training?
This question:
What are the most effective ear training methods
has an excellent best answer.
I'd like to zoom in on its conclusion:
All of these skills, like playing an instrument, take time. Don't get
discouraged, start with the basics in each…
Tim H
- 5,138
- 3
- 34
- 55
18
votes
3 answers
What does it mean to be able to write a fugue?
My theory teacher told me once in passing that she had written fugues. Later on people let me know that to write a fugue you need to be somewhat of a theory genius. Why is this so? What makes the writing of a fugue so hard and make the people that…
Neil Meyer
- 14,943
- 8
- 44
- 101
18
votes
3 answers
What is a session musician?
I've heard the term "session musician" in a few books I've read or videos I've seen, in context like, "You probably wouldn't need to really learn B major deeply unless you're a session musician." It seems counter-intuitive to me - why wouldn't I…
tarun
- 2,259
- 6
- 24
- 38
18
votes
3 answers
How do you know what beat to emphasize based on the time signature?
In learning the guitar I have run across various time signatures. In each time signature it seems as if you are supposed to emphasize different beats. Is this something that you just have to intuit, is there a formula for this, or is it just…
grieve
18
votes
5 answers
What's the difference between overtones and harmonics?
What are overtones and what are harmonics?
How do they relate?
I know that the first harmonic is the tone A at 440 HZ and the second harmonic is at 880HZ an octave higher, it is also the first overtone, is this just a normal tone? Is the base…
Phanest
- 355
- 1
- 3
- 7
18
votes
9 answers
How do you organize your set list for a gig?
To performers out there: What principles/guidelines/methods do you use when you make the set-list for a gig? How do you decide what order to play the songs, when to talk, how to deal with transitions between songs etc.?
pjaall
- 643
- 1
- 5
- 9
18
votes
3 answers
Does a diminished first exist?
Are there any instances where the first note in a scale/chord is "diminished"? For instance, could a Db occur in a D chord, where the context explicitly requires that this is a Db (diminished first) and not a C# (major seventh)?
One example of a…
Lee White
- 5,931
- 5
- 29
- 61
18
votes
6 answers
Right hand accuracy
I've realized, that I have a big problem with right hand accuracy, when using a pick, especially, when I play arpeggios and have to skip a string or a couple of stings. Sometimes, I hit the wrong string, hit two strings instead of one or even miss a…
Silver Light
- 8,082
- 5
- 39
- 57
18
votes
5 answers
How come songs in a certain key play notes not in that key
I just started trying to learn about music theory as I'm learning to play the guitar. So as beginner's do I looked up a list of easy songs to play and I start learning away. Since I'm also trying to learn how music works and not just play other…
Ryan
- 181
- 1
- 1
- 4
18
votes
2 answers
What is an "open tuning"?
I know that Keith Richards has been known to use open tunings on some songs, but what is an open tuning exactly and when/why would you use it?
JustnBeaver
18
votes
8 answers
What's the difference between genre and style?
Is there anybody in the world who knows what's the difference between genre and style in music? In wikipedia there are articles: list of music genres and list of music styles, but when we go to a particular page of music style we will often see…
Jeremen
- 291
- 1
- 2
- 7
18
votes
4 answers
What is an atonal mode?
I got an album by Ornette Coleman and Pat Metheny, "X", and on the linear notes it talks about atonal experiments within the song structures. Are there scales and chord progressions that go along with atonal music?
JustnBeaver
18
votes
3 answers
What is "Tempo 1"?
I've seen adagio, and other names, but I see in classical score that indicates "Tempo 1" in section C.
What does it mean?
seseorang
- 4,137
- 12
- 41
- 78
18
votes
7 answers
How to escape the C Major trap when improvising on the piano
I play/practice the piano for some decades and when improvising (Jazz, Romantic, and sometimes even Baroque), I observe a certain magnetism of the C Major key. I'm able to play scales, arpeggios, cadences in every key, but this didn't help. For this…
Wolf
- 507
- 7
- 18
18
votes
2 answers
What exactly constitutes a PhD in music?
I was looking at some sites of music universities (mainly in the US) and I saw that you could do a PhD in Music.
This made me wonder: What exactly does a PhD student in music do?
If I'm not mistaken, PhD students do some kind of research, right?…
Shevliaskovic
- 31,385
- 20
- 121
- 229