OK. Here’s just a few examples of how I can use theory to help me and even to actually speed up my musical journey. many are about playing, but I've found that my songwriting and playing knowledge move forwards as a pair and one informs the other.
Giving me playing choices:
If I play a full CMajor chord on guitar, using 332010 fingering I know what notes I’m playing - GCEGCE. That’s actually inversions of TWO Cmajor chords in a row, and a choice of TWO root notes (the Cs). So when I’m playing I know that I can play a C chord using all the strings together, or just strings 654, just 321, just 543, just 432, 54321, and so on... When I want to emphasise the root note (the C) I not only know where it is, but I’ve got a choice of two.... and so on. This allows me to colour the music differently to keep it interesting, but it also allows me to choose to play much simpler versions if I’m changing chords in a hurry.
If I'm struggling to get, say a B chord in place in a hurry, I can apply a bit of chord theory to spot which notes I really need to fret and play and which I can skip (so if I'm careful which three strings I strike) I can replace a tricky four finger arrangement with a simple one finger bar, and so on. Great stuff theory... even helps you cheat a little...
OK, I could do most of that with a lot of experimentation (and I do that too) but I find it quicker to be able to combine the two - use the theory to tell me where the best place to look is).
Speed:
Quicker to find the answer that I mentioned above, but faster in other ways too. If I know a chord progression in the key C for instance then I’m already using some basic theory to know what’s meant by a chord progression, and by the “key of C”. But as I know a bit more theory I might also know that the progression was a I, vi, I, IV, V, or whatever. If the singer wants it in G instead, to suit their voice range, then I don’t need to look for a new arrangement or chord sheet, I can transcribe that more or less in my head and play in another key. And while on the subject of singers, I’ve never had much luck getting a singer to sing a guitar tab, but quite a few of them can read music..
Building chords:
If I see an unfamiliar chord I can of course look it up in a chord book, or online and get a chart of finger positions. But it’s quicker and more useful to know how to build it for myself. And doing so gradually builds up a great understanding of what all these fancy chord are about - how the sound varies and why - especially if I do it on a keyboard. It’s so quick and so visually clear what it’s about when you see it on a keyboard. I find the visual illustration help me understand - and remember - what the sound is doing too.
I can build a wide range of chords more or less instantly on keyboard. For instance, you might see in a theory book something like his: “A minor triad (3 note chord) is formed by playing a major third over a minor third.” or “The formula for a minor triad is 1 b3 5” This sounds pretty geeky, but all it means in practice is that you plonk one finger on the root note, count up three semitones (three keys on the piano) add another finger and then go up 4 more semitones (4 keys) to the final finger. By making the simplest, and clearest of small movements in the finger placement you can easily build - for instance - a C Major, C minor, C augmented (C+) C diminished, C7, CMaj7, Csus2, Csus4, and so on. Quite off-putting looking names on the page, but just very very simple and clear arrangements of three or four fingers when you see them on a keyboard. Do it a few times and you get that “Aha I GET what they’re about now...” thing...
Reading:
I can read music. Geez, that’s still a thrill to be able to say that.
So I can pick up something written in Russia 200 years ago and read what the dude had to say. Neat. Or I can pick up this book here - Easy Pop Melodies and see what Lennon and McCartney had to say in Nowhere Man. I can immediately so what key it’s in, and what time signature. I can read the melody straight off the staff too. That means that (even with the most primitive of playing ability) I can pick up a variety of instruments and pick the tune out, on a single string if necessary. I can also see all the chords (just letters above the staff) and I know how to build them if they’re unfamiliar. They’re not, but looking at the music does throw up something interesting - a CMajor chord right next to a Cminor. That’s kind of interesting to see both the Major and its minor in the same key, so if I'd not seen it before I might spend a while looking at that and experimenting to see how they’ve used it, what effect it gave, and what that was all about. Find out other ways of doing it too...
Harmony:
Sure I could bash out a chord progression and just sing the root notes, or maybe use some of the chord tones. If you don’t know any different, that’s where writing chords first can tend to pull you. Can get a bit samey though. Or I could learn a bit more theory about ways of combining melody and supportive harmony. Far from constricting me it has opened my eyes to wider possibilities AND speeded up the methods I use to make choices. No complaints from me.
Conclusion:
Do you think these so-called ‘naturals’ don’t know what’s meant by ‘play an F’ or the ‘key of C’, or what a ‘chord progression’ is? Of course they do, and that’s all just basic music theory. It’s not about whether you learn theory it’s about how much. And I can assure you, the more you know the more useful it is.
You think it gives you some kind of advantage in songwriting over a natural?
Yes.
If I put the same hours in, with the same degree of concentration as a ‘natural’ and have the same amount of whatever ‘talent’ is then my theory knowledge will put me at a clear advantage. As it stands, it’s more realistic to compare me with other amateur players and writers. Does my theory give me any advantages? More tools to work with. Without a shadow of a doubt the answer is YES! But if others don't want to learn any that's fine with me too. We're all different.
Cheers,
Chris
