3 Reasons Music Theory Books Are Used In Private Piano Lessons
Your piano teacher just brought 3 or 4 books to your piano lesson and your wondering; if they all look the same except for the name on the book, how different can it all be and what’s this theory book about about?
Well, first let’s get a quick definition for what is music theory?
Music Theory is the building blocks of all music, regardless of the instrument. In its simplest form, music theory answers the what, when, why and how of music. If music were a car, then theory is the engine, and the brakes, and the coolant system.
I’m sure that you’ve heard of music theory and probably been told how important it is for piano lessons. So, let’s point out three reasons why your child needs to learn theory to play piano.Music Theory Gives Meaning To Written Music
Without knowing music theory, the above image is only symbols and numbers. In order to understand the rules of music, one must understand how to read the rules set up at the beginning of each piece of music.
Express Sound In A Way That Can Be Recorded And Analyzed
Students often ask why there are only seven letters of the alphabet used in music. The answer is because music was played long before it was ever written. Think of the words we use in language. The letter A has no real meaning. It only has meaning because we assigned it a meaning. Music theory has created a way that we can explain a C Major scale in numbers, letters, intervals, and tetrachords. Each of these ways have their own importance for understanding music.
Understanding Music Theory On The Piano Helps You Play Other Instruments.
Piano is often touted as the best entry into music. This is because the instrument is laid out in a flat, side-by-side manner and is very easy to see how to create the music. Also, piano is an instrument that creates a sound that can be used as percussion, melody, and accompaniment. This fulfills all the areas that instruments are normally used. Armed with the knowledge of the theory of how the piano works in music, a student can take this knowledge and understanding easily into other instruments by only having to learn the mechanics of the next instrument. The music theory remains the same.
