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  #16  
Old 07-31-2020, 01:16 PM
JonPR JonPR is offline
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Originally Posted by MartinGibsonFan View Post
Once you get a good beginner book, maybe specifically to Guitar, here's a book I have in my Library that is still beyond my total comprehension, but provides lots of insight.

The Jazz Theory Book by Mark Levine
For a beginner?? No no no no no! Even for a beginner in jazz I wouldn't recommend it.

The only person I'd recommend that book to is someone who collects every available jazz theory book, for some comparative study. As a sole source of theoretical knowledge (even of jazz), it's biased and misleading. There's a lot of great stuff in it, to be sure, but it's skewed towards modal jazz and the misguided chord-scale concept.
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  #17  
Old 07-31-2020, 01:17 PM
JonPR JonPR is offline
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Originally Posted by Quakeroatmeal View Post
Not sure if this is an acceptable spot to ask this question, but as a 32 year old with little to no music theory knowledge, it's a bit of a task for me to start picking up now.

It's seriously like learning a new language. I've picked up a book or two on music theory, and they all seem to assume you have some kind of basic understanding of simple stuff.

Are there any books that really start on the ground level of music theory? I was thinking maybe childrens book may help.

I'm at a point where I have a decent understanding of my guitar, but without the concepts, and most importantly the vocabulary, I feel like I'm floundering...

Any recommendations would be appreciated for the guitar novice interested in learning super basic music theory!
You could try this - free, and written by a guitarist (professor) for other guitarists:
https://www.thegearpage.net/board/in...x-toc.1371119/
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  #18  
Old 07-31-2020, 02:38 PM
DukeX DukeX is offline
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Years ago I enrolled in an on-line College Music 101 class at a local Community College.

Simple and easy, and the professor was always available for email or face-to-face consultation if needed.

Plus, I received 1.0 college credits.
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  #19  
Old 07-31-2020, 03:14 PM
Silly Moustache Silly Moustache is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Quakeroatmeal View Post
Not sure if this is an acceptable spot to ask this question, but as a 32 year old with little to no music theory knowledge, it's a bit of a task for me to start picking up now.

It's seriously like learning a new language. I've picked up a book or two on music theory, and they all seem to assume you have some kind of basic understanding of simple stuff.

Are there any books that really start on the ground level of music theory? I was thinking maybe childrens book may help.

I'm at a point where I have a decent understanding of my guitar, but without the concepts, and most importantly the vocabulary, I feel like I'm floundering...

Any recommendations would be appreciated for the guitar novice interested in learning super basic music theory!
Hi, I started with absolutoley no theory whatsoever, and I have repeatedly failed to learn notation, because it simply isn't the way I "see" music.

I have picked up theory as I've realised that I needed it, and found some aspects really useful, and other stuff , like notation really quite unnecessary for my music making.
Because of the lockdown situation, I've been asked to do zeem meetings, and have been able to help various folks by sharing my understanding, gained over many years.

If you would like to have a zoom meeting, I'd happily arrange it.
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  #20  
Old 07-31-2020, 03:56 PM
Mikesr1963 Mikesr1963 is offline
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Books for Dummies. Look for the title "Guitar Theory".
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  #21  
Old 07-31-2020, 04:07 PM
MartinGibsonFan MartinGibsonFan is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DukeX View Post
Years ago I enrolled in an on-line College Music 101 class at a local Community College.

Simple and easy, and the professor was always available for email or face-to-face consultation if needed.

Plus, I received 1.0 college credits.


I think this is the best advice on getting a ' Crash Course ' in Music Theory

On defense of the Mark Levine book, the nice thing with that book is you have references for the different riffs and progressions, there is a lot of information, like i said, it shouldn't be a beginners guide but it's a good reference for folks that like to dig and search for other information.

J
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  #22  
Old 08-01-2020, 08:50 AM
JonPR JonPR is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MartinGibsonFan View Post
On defense of the Mark Levine book, the nice thing with that book is you have references for the different riffs and progressions
If you mean the excerpts from jazz recordings designed to illustrate the concepts - yes, this is the main thing that gives the book its sense of authority. It certainly made it convincing for me when I first read it. The other thing that made it authoritative was the mind-boggling recommended listening list in the back. I realised my life is too short to really listen to all of that... If he's really listened to all that, then surely he knows what he is talking about!

I also liked the way he wrote - fairly informal, not like a school text book - and the book is well designed too. Not just the spiral binding, but the use of space on the page, so there is never too much information to look at at once. It's an easy and enjoyable book to read - unlike many music theory texts.

It took me a few years - and some other reading from other jazz experts - to realise that many of those convincing-looking quotes from recordings were not evidence for his theories at all. Many of them could be explained in other ways.

There is certainly a ton of useful information in the book (I think the chapter in reharmonization is especially good). But the best that can be said about it is it is "A" Jazz Theory Book. It is not "The" Jazz Theory Book. When it came out, it really was just about the only one, certainly the only really extensive one. Now there are others, and some of them are better - in that they deal with the whole of jazz, not just Levine's personal favourite styles and viewpoint.

I don't think its a bad book, by any means. But for anyone thinking of buying it, I recommend two things.

Firstly, read this critique:
https://mtosmt.org/issues/mto.00.6.1...1.rawlins.html

Secondly, listen to (at least) the first 30 seconds of this (remembering that Levine is promoting chord-scale theory):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NehOx1JsuT4

I don't totally agree with either of those, but they are valid alternative (and equally authoritative) viewpoints. (I think Galper is criticizing the Berklee school orthodoxy more than Levine specifically.)
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  #23  
Old 08-01-2020, 09:29 AM
Deliberate1 Deliberate1 is offline
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OP, you and I are in a similar situation. I started playing the guitar last year, though I have been a woodwinds player for a very long time. I always regretted that I never learned theory, though I am a solid reader. As the lead tenor sax in a big band, I am called on to improvise a great deal. I compensated for my lack of theory training, over the years, by developing a very good ear. If I can hear the chord, I can improvise to it and typically can intuit what the progression will be. But there are surely times and charts that are unpredictable, and that can prove uncomfortable.
I started guitar last year with a teacher. To be honest, his direction is not what I anticipated. Much of what we have been doing for the past 6 months is theory based, and mostly chord structure, transposition, chord transitions
(secondary dominants) etc. It has been a challenge, but I see the purpose in it. He integrates the theory with the fret board. The greatest limiter for me is that I do not know the notes on the fret board well enough. And I am working on that.
So, for my purposes, to be able to read charts and construct music, both with my guitar and horns, the theory will be worth it. Though, as you know, it is a slog. You just have to decide if spending that time is worth it to you. Surely, there are amazing guitarists who don't know a lick of this stuff. But I imagine that most of the ones you admire do.
You will be inundated with book suggestions, This is the one my teacher recommended. It is as basic as it gets. I learn by seeing, and this book will show you on the fret board how the theories work in practice. I have found it invaluable. Best $6 you will spend.
Wish you well with your studies.
David
https://www.abebooks.com/Theory-Cont...0aAv4NEALw_wcB
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