01 - Learning the Language of Music - Music Theory (Sean Atkinson, 2022) VOSE + VOSI

Music has a phenomenal power to move, transport, and delight us. Across numerous styles and forms—from the iconic masterpieces of the classical tradition to genres such as jazz, rock, pop, and folk—great music expresses the inexpressible, speaks across time and cultures, and galvanizes audiences across the world. And the more we understand about music, the more we appreciate it, and a knowledge of music theory is the best place to start. Music may be the most abstract of the arts, as its sonic language is a spectrum of tones, but it has a highly organized structure, a structure that allows for both its form and its meaning. In fact, the great expressive capacity of music and its ability to captivate us and to deeply communicate is rooted in its organized structure and how that structure is used creatively by composers, as well as by performers. A clear knowledge of the theory of music—the “how” of music—offers you insight into: How a musical narrative is created and how music communicates; How music uses time and moves through time; How the tension, release, and resolution of musical harmony play an essential role in the expressive power of music; The diversity of musical styles, and what makes musical styles and genres what they are, be it classical, jazz, bluegrass, or rock & roll; How rhythmic structure influences the effect the music has on us; How different expressive effects are created, both by composers and players; How music is conceived by those who write and play it; and more. In Music Theory: The Foundation of Great Music, you’ll delve into the inner workings of Western tonal music through 18 enjoyable and revealing lessons taught by Professor Sean Atkinson of Texas Christian University. Professor Atkinson, an eminent music theorist and teacher, makes music theory refreshingly clear and accessible, demystifying the skill of reading music as well as the principles of musical analysis. Using a highly interactive approach, he orients the lessons to an understanding of how music creates its remarkable effects, both formally and expressively, and how this understanding benefits us as listeners and players. At the heart of these lessons lies the ability to read music as a tool for understanding what you hear and for deepening your enjoyment in listening, as well as for playing music. As you learn, step by step, to read and understand the written score, you’ll see the structure of the music and how the music unfolds on the page. You’ll also see how musical tones are written down in the form of notes, with each note having a rhythmic value, showing how long the note lasts in time. And you’ll study how rhythm and meter work in music, how the key element of musical harmony functions, how a musical score is performed, and much more. With highly valuable insights for both listeners and instrumentalists, these 18 engaging lessons will teach you to become literate in the language of music.