Music Theory: The Foundation of Great Music

Learn how to read music and understand musical scores through a step-by-step system that makes music theory accessible to anyone.

Overview

Course No. 80060

This 18-lesson course unlocks the inner workings of Western tonal music, helping you:

• Read and interpret musical notation like a professional
• Understand core concepts including tonality, rhythm, harmony, and counterpoint
• Recognize musical structures that create meaning and emotion
• Apply theory knowledge to both classical and contemporary music

What You’ll Master:

✓ Reading staff notation and clefs
✓ Building major/minor scales and chords
✓ Comprehending harmonic progressions
✓ Analyzing musical phrases and forms
✓ Working with lead sheets for jazz/pop

Video Lectures

Section 1: Fundamentals

01: Learning the Language of Music (23 min)
Discover musical expression through Rimsky-Korsakov’s Easter Overture

02: Staff, Clefs, and Notes (23 min)
Master pitch notation on treble and bass clefs

03: Major Scales (28 min)
Construct scales using whole/half step patterns

04: Intervals (26 min)
Measure distances between pitches and their expressive qualities

Section 2: Rhythm & Notation

05: Circle of Fifths (25 min)
Navigate key relationships visually

06: Meter Basics (28 min)
Understand beat organization and time signatures

07: Simple vs. Compound Meters (25 min)
Compare Schumann, Haydn, and Bach rhythms

08: Performing Rhythm (20 min)
Practice downbeats, swing, and iconic patterns

Section 3: Harmony & Structure

09: Minor Keys (24 min)
Transform major scales into minor variants

10: Expression Markings (26 min)
Decode dynamics, articulation, and tempo

11: Counterpoint (33 min)
Compose two-voice melodies using strict rules

12-13: Triads & Seventh Chords (22 min / 21 min)
Build essential harmonic structures

14: Harmonic Progressions (22 min)
Track tonic → predominant → dominant motion

Section 4: Musical Form

15: Phrases & Cadences (23 min)
Identify musical “sentences” and their punctuation

16: Hypermeter (22 min)
Perceive larger rhythmic structures

17: Lead Sheets (31 min)
Apply theory to jazz/pop improvisation

18: Theory in Action (28 min)
Analyze Clara Schumann’s “Three Romances”