Beginner here. very confused.

Hey all, first time posting here. I've been listening to That Handsome Devil's song Treefood, and I've not been able to identify the chord at the end of the loop, the first time they play the chord is at 0:15. Every site that I can find that shows the chords of the song lists it as being a B, but I can tell that there's something more going on in the chord. I know that I can definitely pick out a B flat, but past that I have no ideas. I'll throw in a link to the song for more ease locating it. Any help would be greatly appreciated, and thank you all in advance! :) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxcgnSzSRsE

I stumbled across it and from what I understand these are ways of saying sharp and flat in different languages. Can someone list these all and explain?
I would also appreciate an explanation about the H and S notes, although I think I understand.

Hey r/musictheory !!

I am writing a song using a B^(6sus2) chord. Would it be written as VII^(6sus2)?

Thanks!!

EDIT: For clarity: the key is in C# minor. The chord progression is F#m-C#m-B-B6sus2

So I've recently discovered this oud players Rahim Alhaj and naseer shamma, even though idk much about music theory and stuff, I've learned that middle Eastern music has more notes than western music and some of those can't be found on western instruments such as guitar, piano and etc. Anyone who's looking to get in this type of stuff, just plz go and watch Rahim Alhaj's kexp performance, especially this piece called 'the last time we will fly birds' dude was literally crying during that performance, that's how much he was moved by music.

This is a generic triad matrix for an octatonic parent scale. Right now it is a blank template just so I can show the structure. There would be a more user friendly version that is easier on the eyes, but it would be harder to figure out what’s going on. I can only upload one picture so this is the one I choose.

When it is filled out it will have 7 boxes filled in, with 8 chords each, which is the 56 total triads in any octatonic scale. The other boxes are duplicates of the 7, and will be left blank. The 7 boxes correspond to the 7 chord types secundal, tertial, quartal, A, B, X, Y.

Notice that everything involving a 5th is a duplicate of something closer to the top left corner. So in practice you can eliminate the entire outer edge of the grid and make it a 3x3 grid. I just included it to show my thought process, and to make it very clear that this is distinct from the regular triad matrix of 7 note parent scales.

Within that inner 3x3 grid, you can remove the 2 duplicate quartals. And that leaves our 7 “genre” of chords. I like the term “genre”. It goes with the concept of “generic interval” or “generic triad”. Plus I can say it with a super pompous and exaggerated French accent so people will take me more seriously. Is there already a better term for that concept?

When the grid is properly filled out it will list 8 chords in each of the 7 boxes. Later we can somehow have a side by side interactive comparison between the generic matrix and the specific matrix, but I am hesitant to talk about that yet.

My next post in this series will be the quadrad matrix for 8 note scale (Barry Harris type stuff).

Hi I’m trying to replicate the sound of this piece for guitar riffs (like the riff form elp’s tarkus), but I cannot understand how it uses notes (if there is a logic), I know that they are in fourths

I've been playing piano for close to 7 years (though only with a teacher for 4) and I still don't understand time signatures. I know that anything with 4 on the bottom means that a quarter note gets one beat but that's about it. I don't understand anything past that.

In a song I played a few years ago it was 4/4, but there was 1 measure of 3/4. Why? (After writing the rest of this post I think I actually kind of figured it out but I'm still kind of confused. Is it that the composer couldn't fit what they wanted in 4/4 for that one bit without adding a note or a rest so they just added a 3/4 measure so they wouldn't have to worry about it?)

Also, why isn't 6/8 just 3/4? I'm in a beginning music theory class at my school and I'm a bit farther ahead than most of the people in the class (along with like 4 other kids) so my teacher gave us a rhythm worksheet (for sixteenth note combos and stuff) that happened to have 6/8 in it and from what I can tell, the note values are doubled from what they are in common time. But why not just put 3/4?

Idk how I've gone this long without understanding time signatures but I need to figure it out

I am trying to deepen my knowledge of music theory and have stumbled upon the circle of 3rds. I have an understanding of how it works, and how it differs from the circle of fifths. I’m curious if there’s any use for the circle of 3rds besides mapping out a key in a circle so it’s easier to see?

Hi everyone,

This summer I watched a relatively anime with a banger opening and became obsessed with how it changes keys (if that's the right term) so smoothly. It's just so damn flavorful.

The song is called TRY UNITE! by Megumi Nakajima. Here is a wonderful piano rendition by a lovely individual that I've been trying to transcribe into midi to learn more about what happening theory-wise. If this OP incentivizes you to watch the anime, just know there are better ways to waste your time lol.

My parents used to play some songs that had a very similar vibe by a Mexican popstar (Luis Miguel if you are curious).

I already have a suspicion that house music might be the place to search, but very few house songs share the same kind of vibe. If you know any songs that sound even remotely similar to this, please let me know.

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I need books to understand what makes top music go to the top charts, i need to understand the psychology of what makes music sound good. Any book(s) that makes me understand music theory and whatnot. I am in Canada for that matter and if it's on amazon that would be appreciated, thank you.

Hi /musictheory,

I'm looking for examples of I-IV-vi chord progressions. Only thing I've got so far is the intro of "Dirty Work" by Steely Dan (with an additional flat 7 chord at the end), but apart from that I don't seem to find much. Any ideas?

Hey! I'm a self-taught musician from Norway. I really want to learn music theory, but don't know what's the best way to do so.. I know I can find good websites and watch hours of YouTube videos, but I have a hard learning that way. Is there anyone here who knows if there are any classes or courses or any teachers or anything I can attend or contact? I find that I learn way better when I have someone who I can ask spesific questions and learn and practice from. Thanks for your help! :D

I’m looking for Rameau’s New System of Musical Theory. I would love to read the actual treatise but I’m assuming it’s out of print everywhere. I sure can’t find it, I’ve been looking for a while.

I’m also looking for other books by researchers/theorists that piggyback on Rameau’s ideas in the New System and his other writings that came after that treatise.

Only in print! Not online resources.

I already have a few:

Joel Lester - compositional theory in the eighteenth century

Thomas Christensen - partimenti and continuo playing in theory and in practice

Thomas Christensen - Rameau and musical thought in the enlightenment

I am intermediate pianist and composer and I want to improve my ear, rythm, sight reading,technique and memory.i also want to learn sight singing

Hi all, I'm looking for illustrative examples of the same interval sounding significantly different depending on the scale degrees used and/or the underlying harmony being different. Thanks!

Hello everyone,

I've been playing guitar (and taking lessons) for two years this month, and I was also taking some private theory lessons for a time. I'm no expert, but I've learned a lot and happy with the progress I've made.

However, my intellectual efforts overshadowed my practical efforts. I have recently been working on improvisation with my guitar teacher, who is very advanced (Berklee grad, long time player/teacher) and he has encouraged me to do a few things with improvisation:

1. Hear the chord progression, figure out the order of the chords and determine which chord is the I.

2. When improvising, play intentionally with regard to the chord changes, for instance if the progression goes C-F-G-C, and you know the F is coming up, consider with intent what scale degree of an F chord you want to play.

3. When jamming, listen to and respond to what your partner is playing and build off of the ideas they are giving in the session.

The problem is, absolutely every element of that is completely beyond me. The only thing I am capable of doing is aimlessly navigating a scale shape. Every note is a surprise, I could rarely if-ever tell you which note I am on, what the scale degree is of that note relative to the key or chord in the progression, or contextualizing it in a musical way.

When we practiced yesterday he asked me to figure out which chord in a four-chord progression was the I. It ended up being the 3rd chord, and my guesses were 1, 2, 4, and then 3. My last guess. I couldn't tell at all which one was supposed to be the I. I couldn't "feel" the resolution.

So, I would really like to start building this skillset and working towards true musicianship, as I feel that most of what I have learned both technique wise and theory wise has been very matter-of-fact and thus quite easy, play these notes in this order, this structure is like this, etc. The trouble is, I really just don't even know how to get started, and I could use some advice or guidance. I think that while my teacher is great, he is perhaps so far removed from the kind of ignorance I am experiencing that he does not know how to propose a meaningful solution.

That was a lot of text, sorry about that. Any advice that could be given will be appreciated.

Can anyone help me figure out what the time signature is for Blow Up The Outside World by Soundgarden? There's this change in rhythm during the halfway point of the song that trips me up counting-wise.

what does a key change do if i change it to a relative minor, which has the exact same chords, and how to execute this? how is it even possible to notice when i change from C to Am?

I was playing the song Red Red Robin today and there is a chord I don't understand, perhaps someone can shed some light on why it works? (I'm playing the key of D)

Beginning at the lyric, "I'm just a kid again:" the sequence goes G Gm D Bdim. You can kinda linger of the Bdim before going back to the normal D A D. Thinking diatonically it's IV iv I vi°, but that doesn't feel correct; if I stop on the D it doesn't sound resolved there. So I'm not really sure why the Bdim "feels" right. I would love to use it myself but I don't get it. Does anyone have an idea?

I'm on the hunt for some cool AI applications in Music and music theory, any recommendations/thoughts?

Is there a name for chords like this? Especially in the Beabadoobee examples, there’s this extra note in the chords (like in the example "Sorry") that adds tension, what exactly is that called? It's like a "regular" sounding chord with that one kind of dissonant note that gives it this edginess.

(link to multiple examples, most people here can probably skim through and recognize the similarities quickly): https://voca.ro/1evaNXN8mvK2

What I mean by that is with these punkish alt indie shoegaze inspired artists, these three have very similar sounds, both sonically/texturally and the chords. In their discographies, I hear a lot of power chords, minor chords, and suspended chords, but what else is there that I'm missing? I'm new to music theory so I don't know exactly what it is with the chords/ voicing of the chords that ties all of these artists together to me.

I love this 90s/2000s punk rock sound and am trying to figure out what makes it sound the way it does besides the basics of chorus, detuning, reverb, distortion, etc. so any thoughts are appreciated!

Songs in order for anyone interested: Beabadoobee - Dye It Red Beabadoobee - Worth It Beabadoobee - Back to Mars Beabadoobee - Sorry Beabadoobee - Horen Sarrison The 1975 - Surrounded By Heads and Bodies MUNA - Handle Me James Ivy - Texas James Ivy - Stereo Play James Ivy - Silly Love James Ivy - Involved Snow Wife - I Love Drugs

How do I practice voice leading? Do you guys have any interesting exercises or tricks for this?

I have this dream of being able to segue between unrelated/dense harmony and make everything sound seamless and beautiful.

Question.

https://youtu.be/uwYCqAmh5eU?t=242

The part from 4:09-4:15. I thought it may be called a resolve/resolution but that didn't feel right. I don't know much at all about music theory so sorry if this is a pretty dumb question.

hi! i’m taking ap music theory and i’m trying hard to train my ears. i’d appreciate any advice on being able to aurally identify the three types of minor scales and was wondering what the difference between each one is.

thank you! <3

Hello, I would liek to become more fluent in music dictation, I believe it would be beneficial to my composing skills.

I am aware there exists practices to improve it: do you know any resource, preferably books?

As far as I understand, it goes in pair with solfege so, if possible, I would prefer having some source which also tackles this specific aspect.

In common practice Roman numerals, we write inversions like 6, 65, 42, etc... but how do you write inversions in jazz/pop roman numerals? (i.e. the system that looks like IIm7 V7 Imaj7)

I came across this song, and it’s wonderful. But, I can’t figure out the chord progression in the beginning. Can I have a little help? I just need the 4 measures after the intro (0:08). Please, and I appreciate it!

https://youtu.be/2gaT-MnfBrE?si=bSyDfx7V3Pf7uhr6