Music Theory
89 articles · 20 tools
Guides
Guitar Chord Progressions: the Patterns Behind Most Songs
Chord progressions are numbers, not names — learn I–V–vi–IV once and you can play it in any key. The seven chords of the five guitar keys, the eight progressions worth memorizing, the songs that use them, and how to move any of them with a capo.
What is the chromatic scale?
Learn what the chromatic scale is: all 12 pitches an octave apart by half steps, why it has no home key, how to spell it up and down, and how to play it.
Melodic minor scale
Learn what the melodic minor scale is, how it raises the 6th and 7th ascending, why classical practice reverts descending, and the notes of A melodic minor.
Easy guitar songs for beginners
A dozen genuinely easy guitar songs for beginners, grouped from two chords to four — with the exact chords each one uses, why it’s simple, and where a capo fits in.
The pentatonic scale, explained
What the pentatonic scale is, how to spell the major and minor versions, why dropping two notes makes it sound safe, and how to play one on the piano.
Key signatures, explained
What a key signature is, why it exists, the order of sharps and flats, and two quick tricks for naming the major key — and its relative minor — at a glance.
Major and minor scales: the difference
Major sounds bright, minor sounds shaded — and the difference is a handful of lowered notes. Learn to spell and hear it, plus the three minor scales.
How to recognize intervals by ear
A repeatable method for naming intervals by ear: pin each one to a familiar song, drill both directions daily, and beat the common mix-ups.
Note values, rests, and time signatures
Learn how rhythm is written: note values and rests, dots and ties, and how a time signature groups the beat into measures so you can count and play in time.
Piano keys and notes: a map of the keyboard
Name any key on sight: the repeating pattern of white and black keys, the black-key landmarks, octaves and middle C, and the sharps and flats.
The bass clef, explained
Read the bass clef with confidence: what the F clef marks, the line and space note names, where middle C sits, and a simple path to fluency.
The treble clef, explained
Read the treble clef with confidence: what the G clef is, name every line (E, G, B, D, F) and space (F, A, C, E), and find middle C below the staff.
How to read piano notes
Learn to connect notes on the page to keys on the piano: orient by the black-key groups, anchor on middle C, and turn any written note into the right key.
Music intervals, explained
What a musical interval is, how to count and name seconds through octaves, what major, minor, and perfect mean, and how to recognize each one by ear.
Piano scales for beginners
Learn what piano scales are, why the major scale sounds bright, how to play C major with the right fingering, and a simple practice path to start today.
Piano chords for beginners
Learn how piano chords are built from stacked thirds, find the six essential beginner triads, and play your first chord progression with confidence.
How to read sheet music: a beginner's guide
Learn to read sheet music from scratch: the staff, treble and bass clefs, note names, note values, and time signatures, plus a simple practice path.
Circle of fifths
The one diagram that turns key signatures, related keys and chords into something you can reason about — the circle of fifths, explained.
From the books
Scale Construction Table
A quick-reference table of every scale in this book — its tones and step structure at a glance.
Other Exotic and Ethnic Scales
Enigmatic, Hungarian minor, Persian, Arabian, Japanese and more — exotic and ethnic scales with fretboard patterns.
Diminished
The symmetrical eight-note diminished scale (whole-half and half-whole) in positional and diagonal fretboard forms.
Whole Tone
The dreamy six-note whole tone scale and its symmetrical shapes, in positions and three-notes-per-string patterns.
Chromatic
The twelve-tone chromatic scale in positional and single-string fingerings for building speed and dexterity.
Phrygian-Dominant
The Phrygian-dominant scale — the fifth mode of harmonic minor — with its Spanish/flamenco color, across the neck.
Harmonic Minor
The exotic harmonic minor scale and its distinctive raised seventh, in five positions and full-neck patterns.
Locrian
The unstable Locrian mode with flatted second and fifth, mapped in positions and three-notes-per-string patterns.
Mixolydian
The dominant, bluesy Mixolydian mode with its flatted seventh, in positions and full-neck fingerings.
Lydian
The airy Lydian mode with its raised fourth, shown in five positions and three-notes-per-string forms.
Phrygian
The dark Phrygian mode with its flatted second, mapped across the fretboard in positions and full-neck patterns.
Dorian
The Dorian mode — a minor scale with a bright raised sixth — in five positions and three-notes-per-string patterns.
Creating Modes
How the seven modes are created from a parent scale — and how to see and hear each as a scale in its own right.
Major
The major scale in five positional patterns and three-notes-per-string forms, with full-neck fingerings.
Natural Minor
The natural minor (Aeolian) scale in five positions and three-notes-per-string patterns across the whole neck.
Construction Basics
How every scale is built from the major scale by altering its steps — the foundation for all the patterns ahead.
What are Scales?
Scales are the collections of notes behind every key and solo — here's what they are and why understanding them transforms your playing.
Dynamics, Slurs, and Articulations
Play Clementi's "Sonatina in C Major" while learning dynamics, slurs, articulations, and cut time to shape phrases with smooth, separated, loud, and soft notes.
Diatonic Four-Part Chords and Progressions
Discover how four-part seventh chords stack onto every degree of the major scale to form the diatonic chords behind countless progressions.
Dominant Seventh Chords and Inversions
Construct the dominant seventh chord, decode why a bare 7 suffix signals it, and practice its inversions in both hands from every root.
Minor Seventh (With Flatted Fifth) Chords and Inversions
Flatten the fifth of a minor seventh to form the half-diminished chord, meet the diminished interval, and practice its inversions.
Minor Seventh Chords and Inversions
Build the minor seventh chord and its inversions, one of the most commonly used four-part chords in pop, jazz, and beyond.
Major Seventh Chords and Inversions
Step beyond triads into four-part chords, building the major seventh chord from a C major scale and learning to read its Cmaj7 symbol and inversions.
Introducing “Slash Chord” Symbols
Read slash-chord symbols like "C/E" that tell you to put a chord tone other than the root on the bottom, a staple of popular sheet music.
Voice Leading Between Inversions
Connect chords smoothly by following the inner melodic lines, learning how stepwise motion between voices keeps progressions sounding seamless.
Inverting Minor Triads
Apply the same inversion process to minor triads, starting with C minor and writing out first and second inversions by hand to cement the skill.
Inverting Major Triads
Reshape the C major triad into first and second inversions, then learn to invert major triads across every key without changing the chord.
What Are Inversions and Why Do We Use Them?
Discover why chords sound smoother and sit easier under the hands when you move a note other than the root to the bottom through inversion.
Using the 7th and the 3rd of the Chord Below the Melody
Master the jazz staple of voicing the 7th and 3rd of a chord below the melody, demonstrated on the standard "All the Things You Are."
Using Right-Hand Triads with Single Notes in the Left Hand
Arrange Sarah McLachlan's gospel ballad "Angel" in 3/4 with right-hand triads over a static left hand, while learning add9 chords and bass-note walkdowns.
Forming Triads Below the Melody
Build fuller right-hand arrangements by forming basic and upper-structure triads beneath the melody, adding two chord tones under each melody note.
Using Intervals Below the Melody
Add warmth to a melody by placing 6ths and 3rds beneath it in the right hand, building fuller arrangements without obscuring the tune.
More Advanced Left-Hand Patterns with Arpeggios
Expand your left-hand accompaniment with open triad arpeggios, spreading chord tones beyond an octave to create richer, fuller broken-chord patterns from fake-book symbols.
Applying the Techniques to Songs
See comping techniques at work on real songs, starting with the Beatles' instantly recognizable "Let It Be" piano figure and its octave doubling and upper-structure voicings.
Introduction to “Upper Structure” Triad Voicings
Learn upper-structure voicings — playing a triad over a bass root — as a faster, easier way to grab big four-part and larger chords while comping.
Adding Triads in the Left Hand
Accompany the melody of "Buffalo Gals" with full left-hand triads, practicing the 5-3-1 fingering and the back-and-forth hand shifts between F and C chords.
Diatonic Triads and Progressions
Build a triad on every note of the C major scale to reveal its major, minor, and diminished qualities and how Roman numerals map chord function.
Creating Three-Note Chords (Triads)
Stack two intervals to spell your first three-note chords, building major triads from a root, third, and fifth drawn straight from the major scale.
Using Intervals in Songs
Hear how major and minor 2nds shape real melodies, and discover why these whole- and half-step intervals are the everyday building blocks of music.
Creating Intervals from the Major Scale
Build every interval from the C major scale, hearing major and perfect intervals as you play harmonic pairs of notes together.
Introduction to Intervals
Begin the theory behind intervals, learning to measure the distance between two notes by counting letter names from the bottom up.
Introducing 6/8 and 12/8 Time
Count in eighth notes with the 6/8 and 12/8 time signatures, then play a traditional tune in the new key of B-flat major.
Introducing 3/4 Time
Count in threes with 3/4 waltz time, tracing its roots to Strauss and Lanner before playing a folk tune in this lilting meter.
Alternatives to 4/4 Time
Move beyond familiar 4/4 time by understanding what a time signature's top and bottom numbers really mean, opening the door to new rhythms.
Using Accidentals
Step outside a key signature using sharp, flat, and natural signs called accidentals, and learn how long they stay in force within a measure.
Introducing Key Signatures
Discover how the sharps or flats at the start of a piece form a key signature that tells you which key you're in and which major scale a song is built on.
Building Major Scales
Build a C major scale step by step using the whole-and-half-step formula, discovering why C uses only white keys while other starting notes mix in black ones.
F Position
Set up F Position with both hands, resting your right thumb on F and remembering the B-flat the key of F requires, ready to move beyond the basic five-finger shape.
The Building Blocks of Scales
Explore the major scale, the foundation of most Western melodies, and learn how whole steps and half steps combine to build its distinctive pattern.
“Straight Eighths” vs. “Swing Eighths”
Drop the middle note of each triplet to hear where swing eighths come from, and learn why the "&" lands later than in straight rhythms.
4/4 Time Signature
Decode the 4/4 time signature placed after the clef, where the top number sets four beats per measure and the bottom number defines the beat's rhythmic value.
The Sixteenth Rest
Get to know the two-flagged sixteenth rest and play a melody that weaves together quarter, eighth, and sixteenth notes with their matching rests.
Introducing Sixteenth Notes
Learn the sixteenth note, worth a quarter of a beat, along with its double flags and beams and the new "e & a" counting that divides each beat into four.
Introducing Dotted Eighth Notes
Add a dot to an eighth note to stretch it to three-quarters of a beat, then pair it with a sixteenth note to fill a single beat.
Eighth-Note Triplets
Squeeze three eighth notes into a single beat to create triplets, counting "1 trip-let 2 trip-let" evenly while spotting the telltale beamed "3."
The Eighth Rest
Get acquainted with the eighth rest, a half-beat silence, and practice a melody that mixes eighth notes and rests by clapping before you play.
Introducing Tied Notes
Discover how a tie links two same-pitch notes into one sustained sound, letting a note ring across the barline when beats run short.
Introducing Dotted Notes
Add a dot after a note to extend its length by half again, turning half notes into three-beat values and quarter notes into one-and-a-half.
Introducing Eighth Notes
Meet the eighth note, lasting half a beat, and learn how flags and beams notate it whether it stands alone or joins its neighbors.
Pickup Measures
Find out why many songs start partway into the first measure and how composers use pickup measures to drop the opening rests before the melody begins.
Introducing Rests
Understand rests as measured beats of silence, learning to count and observe one-, two-, and four-beat pauses just as carefully as the notes you play.
Counting Rhythms with Quarter, Half, and Whole Notes
Count your way through a 4/4 example by placing the right number of beats under each note, ensuring every measure adds up to the time signature.
Introducing Note Lengths
Get to grips with quarter, half, and whole notes, learning how each note's shape and stem tell you exactly how many beats it lasts.
Separating Music into Measures
Meet the rhythmic pulse behind music and learn how beats are grouped into measures with bar lines, including the final double bar that marks a song's end.
Learning the Note Names in Treble and Bass Clefs
Build a set of C-note 'guideposts' across a four-octave range to quickly recognize and read note names throughout the treble and bass clefs.
Middle C and Ledger Lines
See why middle C sits between the clefs and how ledger lines extend the staff to notate the notes that fall just above and below it.
The Grand Staff
Discover how the treble and bass clefs join into the grand staff, the standard layout for piano music where your right and left hands each read their own clef.
The Bass Clef
Meet the bass clef used for left-hand notes, and learn how the F line helps you name the notes across the lower keyboard.
The Treble Clef
Meet the treble clef used for right-hand notes, and learn how the G line and middle C anchor your reading of the upper keyboard.
The Musical Staff
Begin reading music by learning the five-line staff and how notes sit on lines and spaces to tell you exactly what to play.
Finding the White and Black Keys
Make sense of the keyboard layout by spotting the two-and-three black-key groups and using the A-to-G music alphabet to name the white keys.
Tools
Music Theory tools →Interactive tools for Music Theory — try them right in your browser.
Accidental calculator
Pick a key and a note letter and it tells you the sharp, flat, or natural that letter carries in that key, spells the note, and shows it on the staff.
Chord analysis tool
Pick a major or minor key and see its seven diatonic triads with numerals, chord symbols, and notes — click a numeral to light the chord on the keyboard and hear it.
Chord ear trainer
Train your ear to recognise chords: hear a chord, name its type — major, minor, diminished and more. Instant feedback and a score.
Chord finder
Pick a root note and a chord type — major, minor, sevenths, suspended and more — and see the chord on the piano, named and spelled out for you.
Chord progression player
Browse the progressions behind pop, rock, jazz, blues and classical music, hear each one in any key on piano or guitar, and loop it at your own tempo to practice or write over.
Chord reading trainer
A chord is stacked on the staff, you name its type, and you can hear it — with instant feedback and a running score.
Interval ear trainer
Train your ear to recognise intervals: hear two notes, name the interval. Instant feedback and a running score.
Interval finder
Pick a root note and an interval — from a minor second to an octave — and see and hear the two notes on the piano.
Interval reading trainer
Two notes appear on the staff, you name the interval between them, and you can hear it — with instant feedback and a running score.
Key signature finder
Pick a mode and a key and see its sharps or flats drawn on the staff, the scale spelled out, and its relative key named — then hear it played.
Key signature trainer
A key signature appears on the staff, you pick the major key it belongs to, and you get instant feedback and a running score.
Keyboard ear trainer
Hear a note, then click the matching key on the on-screen piano — with instant feedback, the right key revealed on a miss, and a running score.
Note ear trainer
Hear a note, name it, and get instant feedback and a running score — with a reference C to anchor your ear, right in your browser.
Note finder
Pick a note and see every place it sits on the piano keyboard, named — and tap any key to hear it.
Note reading trainer
Practice reading the treble staff: a note appears, you click it on the piano. Instant feedback, the note plays, your score tracks.
Scale ear trainer
Hear a scale played from a random root and name its type — major, minor, the modes, pentatonic, blues — with instant feedback and a running score.
Scale finder
Pick a root note and a scale type — major, minor, the modes, pentatonic, blues — and see every note light up on the piano, spelled out for you.
Scale reading trainer
A scale is written on the staff, you name its type, and you can hear it played back — with instant feedback and a running score.
Tap tempo (BPM tapper)
Tap the button or the space bar in time with any music and it reads the tempo back in BPM, with a matching tempo marking.
Virtual piano
Play a piano in your browser — use your mouse, touch, or computer keyboard. Real piano sound, and a free Pro tab with up to 61 keys, sustain, MIDI keyboard input, a metronome, and recording.