What is music theory, anyway?

Many of you piano parents have seen your kids carrying around a theory book and have probably helped them on their theory homework at some point, but you might not know why we bother. The string player parents out there might not even know what music theory is, or how their students use it in their playing, since there isn't a standard theory textbook that we use.

Music theory can be a very intimidating subject for newcomers to the music scene, but it doesn't have to be. Theory is simply the study of the nuts and bolts of music. In English class we learn about nouns, verbs, adjectives, and sentence structure, and music theory is pretty much the same thing. We learn about the basics of how music is created, terms we need to know to play it, and we analyze the harmony so we can better interpret the music. In fact, without music theory, we would have no idea how to play any of the notes on the page.

As a professional musician, I use my training in music theory (which involves years of study in college, by the way) to inform many of my artistic decisions. I can also better appreciate high level music if I take the time to examine how the composer created it. Just like admiring the architecture of a beautiful building, we can admire the craftsmanship of a Bach Partita or a Beethoven Sonata.

So keep helping your pianists with their theory homework (if you can still keep up with them!) and quiz the string players you know on their music theory. All of our students should know about note names, clefs, dynamics, slurs, ties, sharps, flats, tempo markings, chords, and many other aspects of music. You will probably be surprised by how much they already know about the inner workings of music theory!