Questions tagged [theory]

For questions about how music works, seeking to identify structures and patterns in music. Used to indicate questions about musical concepts and structures, as opposed to techniques and execution.

Filter by
Sorted by
Tagged with
0 votes
0 answers
6 views

How do find the key signature in "Fantasia on Greensleeves"

Can someone verify if Ralph Vaughan Williams "Fantasia on Greensleeves" is played in F natural minor/melodic minor scale or C minor, if not which key signature?
Sky8's user avatar
  • 21
2 votes
2 answers
108 views

How do i arrange chords after mixing pentatonic modes?

The Ionian mode which is the Major scale - is the second mode of the minor pentatonic scale (the Major pentatonic scale) plus a Perfect 4th and a Major 7th notes. It is also a combination of, for ...
Mike Hawke's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
206 views

Syncopation in Greensleeves?

Can anyone explain if there's syncopation in Ralph Vaughan Williams' (To sir with love version) of Fantasia on Greensleeves.
Sky8's user avatar
  • 21
-3 votes
4 answers
194 views

Is there a mathematic reason why Standard tuning for guitar is number 1 in the series of tunings? Could AI find it given a guitar with no tuning? [duplicate]

Physics, Mathematics, and Linguistic Stack Exchange simply refuse to accept questions about the mathematics of tablature and guitar. But what is tablature besides lines and numbers? These sites often ...
Terence Allen's user avatar
3 votes
3 answers
55 views

Do added-tone chords change depending on the key?

I'm so confused. I have three questions. 1. Is the added tone (or note) counted from the tonic of a key or the root note of the chord? 2. Since, with the same scale degree, a note changes depending on ...
Laura Strondtham's user avatar
4 votes
4 answers
2k views

Is there any benefit in trying to play a song by ear?

I started playing Take Me Out To the Ball Game by ear on the piano and I find that I have been making several mistakes in knowing what note comes next. I don't know the lyrics well but I am familiar ...
heretoinfinity's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
115 views

how to theoretically understand that chords are compatible? [closed]

how can we theoretically understand that chords are compatible? let's imagine that there is a chord X1 and X2, what rules/conditions must these chords follow in order to be compatible? I have a ...
Asd Fgh's user avatar
  • 11
2 votes
0 answers
52 views

Why is it the C Major scale that is played without accidentals, instead of A [duplicate]

Why is it C's Major scale that comes without accidentals instead of A? The C Major scale is played C D E F G A B C The C chromatic scale is played C C# D D# E F F# G G# A A# B C Why was it decided ...
eac's user avatar
  • 21
1 vote
0 answers
69 views

Anyone know what key this cadence from the SimCity 3000 theme is in? [closed]

I'm currently analyzing the SimCity 3000 theme ( ). I've noticed that the chords for the intro (by figuring out the notes for each chord and then looking the note ...
ChrisNonyminus's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
113 views

What do you call it when a song constantly adds prominent rests? (like the example given)

Check out the first 25 seconds of (Romance in the Night Sky [Touhou]). As is immediately obvious, it keeps hitting you with rests in a weird rhythm that completely ...
chausies's user avatar
  • 295
4 votes
1 answer
354 views

How to Identify & Complete Sequences

I'd like help understanding the concept of sequences. I know it is considered a form of repitition, but not much else. Below is an excerpt from Bach's Invention in Dm. I am told this excerpt includes ...
Exandrius Grey's user avatar
2 votes
3 answers
631 views

"approved ultra-nationalist style" of soviet symphonies during Stalin time

In a "keeping score" video about 5th Symphony by Shostakovich a director Michael Tilson Thomas says the following: Instead of writing in the approved ultra-nationalist style, Shostakovich ...
SBF's user avatar
  • 142
1 vote
1 answer
417 views

Call and response

What makes some songs good on call and response like autumn leaves. But other such as days of wine and roses not work so good? Just to be clear, with call and response I mean playing melody and chords ...
music5475's user avatar
  • 237
2 votes
0 answers
56 views

Why aren't clefs aligned with octaves? [duplicate]

It looks like my questions is largely answered by Why not use only octave clefs?. I'm going to leave this here anyways in case it's useful for others. Hello! I've got a genuine question, although I'm ...
MikeTheTall's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
158 views

Creative Ideas for Teaching Musical Ornaments to Kids [closed]

I am a music teacher planning to introduce the concept of musical ornaments to a group of young children. I want to make this educational experience engaging and fun for them, and I'm seeking creative ...
Fernando V's user avatar
5 votes
3 answers
182 views

How do you recognize open-position chords by ear?

So, in my ear training class, we're seeing open-position triads. Major, minor, and diminished in all inversions. I can't for the life of me identify these chords by ear. I just hear a random string of ...
John05's user avatar
  • 317
0 votes
1 answer
75 views

(re)Harmonising simple tunes

(don't delete this post, this question phrased like this hasn't been asked before) I know about music theory, chord functions and chord substitutions. But more in general terms. When I ask different ...
music5475's user avatar
  • 237
3 votes
1 answer
301 views

ii-ii6-I progression

I've heard this progression many times and in many ways over the course of my life, but I can't seem to assign a name to it or find out any further information about it or its history. It goes as ...
Edward Kirby's user avatar
0 votes
2 answers
71 views

What would using only one Solmization(Solfège) syllable to sing the lyrics to a song be called?

For example, if one were to sing la or al (or other 1 consonant and 1 syllable combinations) to replace every morpheme of the words in a song. Is there a name for that idea, or is the closest thing ...
Lecifer's user avatar
  • 798
3 votes
6 answers
537 views

How to use modes to create chords

OK I know major and minor modes will produce different chords but what about other modes? How to derive chords from dorian, phrygian? Lydian? Mixolydian? Locrian? Edit: The chord order in A minor is i ...
selectstart's user avatar
2 votes
3 answers
153 views

The Newton Brothers "I'm the candy Man" chord progression analysis

I've been listening to "I'm the candy man" from The Fall of the House of Usher this morning and am hitting a little roadblock trying to think of the theory behind the chord progression. It ...
Jon's user avatar
  • 21
2 votes
2 answers
180 views

What should this chord be called?

In a piece that I'm composing, I use a very weird chord (arpeggiated) in bar 3 of the below excerpt: The chord progression is G - C♯7 - ??? - A. How should this chord be named, and does it include the ...
mathlander's user avatar
3 votes
3 answers
960 views

What is the name of this musical scale: E, F, G, G#, B, C#, D?

What is the name of this scale? As far as a root note goes, I think these three arrangements of it sound like they have a root. E, F, G, G#, B, C#, D... D, E, F, G, G#, B, C#... B, C#, D, E, F, G, G#....
Jason's user avatar
  • 31
1 vote
2 answers
94 views

Why do the chords of one song work with the melody of the other perfectly

Specifically, these 2 songs: Redbone: (Chords are B, C#, D#m in original key) Snooze: (Chords are G#m7, A#m7, Bmaj7 transposed + 6 ...
nofarings's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
61 views

How does swapping parts affect an arrangement

So, thinking about a typical arrangement structure, from what I know, is built from bass parts to effectively soprano ones. So within a group of instruments, let's say trumpets, you could have 4th ...
Stephen Strickland's user avatar
3 votes
3 answers
467 views

Emulating a 415 Hz tuner?

Is it possible to use a standard 440 Hz digital tuner to emulate a 415 Hz tuner, even if it doesn't explicitly support setting the A4 frequency? I'm learning to play the viol, and I can't find a good ...
Cerin's user avatar
  • 216
2 votes
5 answers
1k views

Does melody come from root progressions?

I’ve noticed that in a melody certain notes stand out and it’s always the root of the current chord or arpeggio. (also, are arpeggios only descending/ascending or can they be in a random order?) In ...
Lecifer's user avatar
  • 798
4 votes
4 answers
2k views

Why does a guitar scale shape have more than 7 notes?

As the title suggests, I wonder the number of notes in a scale shape on guitar. Let's take the G major scale in 2 octaves: G A B C D E F# G A B C D E F# G, there are 15 notes. I found that in many ...
trequartista's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
316 views

Why are these two songs nearly identical for 20 whole seconds? Could there be a theoretical explanation?

Disclaimer: this question is not about copyright. I am trying to understand why the voice melodies of the two songs are so similar. I thought the chord progression could be classical, and that there ...
Lorenzo Pompili's user avatar
2 votes
5 answers
395 views

Purpose of ascending and descending scales?

I understand that ascending scales go from a lower pitch class up to the next pitch class with the same letter name. For example, C to C'. For descending scales it is the reverse. What I don't get is ...
MusicQuestions7's user avatar
6 votes
3 answers
798 views

What is mode borrowing?

There's a question asking me about to identify mode borrowing, how do I do it? What is mode borrowing, may i have some examples?
Funnyplayer's user avatar
2 votes
0 answers
95 views

Hexachordal solmization and the melodic minor scale

How does one sign an ascending melodic minor scale using hexachordal solmization? Here is an example, it's the famous Bourreé by Bach, from the Suite in E minor, BWV 996: We know that Bach used this ...
Kresimir's user avatar
  • 388
4 votes
0 answers
64 views

Do 20th- and 21st-century concerti still follow the expected forms of the 18th and 19th centuries?

When looking at opening movements of instrumental concerti in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, we see a pretty standard alternation of ritornello (orchestral-focused) and solo sections. These ...
Richard's user avatar
  • 84k
3 votes
2 answers
101 views

descending chord sequence from a bossa nova

IM LISTENING TO " MY LITTLE BOAT" bossa nova song. it has a descending sequence in the verse: Dmaj7 - Db7 -Cmaj7 -B7 -Bbmaj7 etc... what's the best way to describe this theoretically? (from ...
Boaz's user avatar
  • 81
2 votes
2 answers
48 views

When to use sixth in continuo according to Bianciardi?

From Bianciardi's Breve Regola (http://www.bassus-generalis.org/bianciardi/bianciardi.html): "But because some notes don’t have a fifth above, a sixth is used in its place; this happens in those ...
volvo's user avatar
  • 21
2 votes
4 answers
126 views

Can an imperfect (or half) cadence feel completely stable/finished?

A while ago I wrote a quartet (or attempted to) which contained an imperfect cadence in a minor key, specifically i - V. The V chord is simply a triad with no seventh. In the context that I wrote it, ...
user94662's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
937 views

How does one resolve the conflict between Renaissance theory of Cadences and the contradictions against it in Bach Chorales?

A level pupil. Made the mistake of learning Renaissance cadence voicing way before starting A-level harmony course. There's a conflict of interest between the cadential progressions of the renaissance ...
Ridiculable Pupil's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
71 views

Which is better in determining consonance in chords and in scales: The Harmonic Series or Simpler Ratios?

Is the answer to this question simply that both of these concepts aid in understanding which chords and intervals are consonant or is one of these discoveries actually better than the other?
Lecifer's user avatar
  • 798
2 votes
0 answers
61 views

How did tetrachords become whole and half steps?

How did the ancient Greek concept of tetrachords evolve into the whole- and half-step model familiar today?
Lecifer's user avatar
  • 798
0 votes
0 answers
44 views

Why did the ancient Greeks choose tetrachords?

Why did the ancient Greeks choose tetrachords as the basis for their musical theory rather than some other structure?
Lecifer's user avatar
  • 798
0 votes
0 answers
40 views

History of Tetrachords [duplicate]

I posted a similar question not too long ago and it was suggested that I look into tetrachords and I quickly understood why, but now I have questions about tetrachords. For what reason are diatonic ...
Lecifer's user avatar
  • 798
2 votes
0 answers
23 views

How to identify the important order of each note in inversions? [duplicate]

Is A C E G with a root on E an Am7 or a CM6 inversion? In this case why can A be the most important note or just a tension I could skip at the same time? How should I identify the quality of a chord ...
jo black's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
59 views

Harmonic Analysis of Commendatore Scene [closed]

Where can I find a good old fashioned roman numeral analysis of the Commendatore scene from Don Giovanni? I know a fair amount of classical music theory (well, enough to be dangerous) and I've always ...
John C.'s user avatar
  • 11
2 votes
3 answers
120 views

Question about chord progressions and scales

recently I watched a Youtube Short of a short Bossa Nova chord progression, with the chords in order as follows: Cm9 -> Fm7 -> Dm7b5 -> G7b13 -> Cm9 So I looked up the C minor scale. ...
rodri's user avatar
  • 23
2 votes
1 answer
77 views

How can harmony be implied by melody [duplicate]

I'm just curious about allot of compositional techniques, and one of them is the concept of "implying" harmony because it can be useful for determining later harmonic lines for an already ...
amcstomp's user avatar
  • 113
6 votes
4 answers
643 views

Why does this melody tend to be in the key of F Major rather than in the key of C Major

When composing, I generally start with C Major to be simple, but very often, I can hear that in the melody another key is suggested. Here is such an example : The melody starts by leaping to the VI ...
amcstomp's user avatar
  • 113
1 vote
0 answers
71 views

How to tune a 2 stringed instrument [closed]

I just got a two string instrument. I’m trying to find out how to tune this,I’m assuming it’s High E and B not sure? Or should they be the same gauge again not sure? Any experts?
MidnightRambler's user avatar
7 votes
4 answers
480 views

How to decide between half-, quarter-, and eighth-notes when transcribing a song

I am trying to transcribe a little song and I am facing a problem: I am realising that there are several ways to write it, 2 ways to be more specific; Here are 2 images (I just wrote the first few ...
user94317's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
305 views

What does this T-with-a-bar-in-the-middle accidental mean?

I've never seen it before, and I found it on this video. I know it's an accidental, though.
Ian Miller's user avatar
8 votes
5 answers
507 views

Why are triads considered perfect chords and the basis which all extensions are built off of?

Why are triads considered perfect chords and the basis which all extensions are built off of? I'm sort of posting the question from an ignorant standpoint but I do already have some prior knowledge. I ...
Lecifer's user avatar
  • 798

1
2 3 4 5
74