Music Theory for Computer Musicians
By Michael Hewitt
About your course materials
Many DJs, gigging musicians, and electronic music producers understand how to play their instruments or make music on the computer, but they lack the basic knowledge of music theory needed to take their music-making to the next level and compose truly professional tracks. Beneath all the enormously different styles of modern electronic music lie certain fundamentals of the musical language that are exactly the same no matter what kind of music you write. It is very important to acquire an understanding of these fundamentals if you are to develop as a musician and music producer. Put simply, you need to know what you are doing with regard to the music that you are writing. Music Theory for Computer Musicians explains these music theory fundamentals in the most simple and accessible way possible. Concepts are taught using the MIDI keyboard environment and today's computer composing and recording software. By reading this book and following the exercises contained within it, you, the aspiring music producer/computer musician, will find yourself making great progress toward understanding and using these fundamentals of the music language. The result will be a great improvement in your ability to write and produce your own original music!
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About this product
Many DJs, gigging musicians, and electronic music producers understand how to play their instruments or make music on the computer, but they lack the basic knowledge of music theory needed to take their music-making to the next level and compose truly professional tracks. Beneath all the enormously different styles of modern electronic music lie certain fundamentals of the musical language that are exactly the same no matter what kind of music you write. It is very important to acquire an understanding of these fundamentals if you are to develop as a musician and music producer. Put simply, you need to know what you are doing with regard to the music that you are writing. Music Theory for Computer Musicians explains these music theory fundamentals in the most simple and accessible way possible. Concepts are taught using the MIDI keyboard environment and today's computer composing and recording software. By reading this book and following the exercises contained within it, you, the aspiring music producer/computer musician, will find yourself making great progress toward understanding and using these fundamentals of the music language. The result will be a great improvement in your ability to write and produce your own original music!
Teaches DJs, gigging musicians, and electronic music producers the music theory concepts they need to become complete musicians.
Uses the MIDI keyboard environment and today’s computer composing and recording software, such as Pro Tools, Reason, and Ableton Live, to teach concepts.
Includes a companion CD with illuminating examples to help drive home the theory lessons.
The author is an expert and highly experienced teacher of these concepts at the college level.
Table of contents
- Introduction
- Chapter 1: Musical Sound
- Chapter 2: The Notes
- Chapter 3: The Major Scale
- Chapter 4: Rhythm, Tempo and Note Lengths
- Chapter 5: Score Editing
- Chapter 6: Intervals
- Chapter 7: Meter
- Chapter 8: Chords
- Chapter 9: The Natural Minor Scale
- Chapter 10: Melody and Motives
- Chapter 11: The Harmonic and Melodic Minor Scales
- Chapter 12: Augmented and Diminished Intervals and Interval Inversions
- Chapter 13: Chordal Inversions, Octave Doubling, and Spacing
- Chapter 14: Additive Rhythms
- Chapter 15: Expanding Your Knowledge of Keys
- Chapter 16: the Pentatonic Scale
- Chapter 17: Major, Minor, Augmented, and Diminished Triads
- Chapter 18: Chord Progressions and Root Movement
- Chapter 19: The Cycle of Fifths
- Chapter 20: The Seven Diatonic Modes
- Chapter 21: Chords of the Seventh
- Chapter 22: Exotic Scales
- Chapter 23: Complex Harmony
- Chapter 24: Arpeggiation
- Chapter 25: Intonation
- Chapter 26: Conclusion
- Appendix A: Scales
- Appendix B: Audio CD and Accompanying Text Sidebars
Resources
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