Learn Music Theory your way with a TakeLessons expert

What are the "keys" to identifying different key signatures? Read on for some great tips from Tucson, AZ teacher Lourdes C... Even if you’re a beginner, understanding key signatures is a critical part of reading music. A key signature is a set of sharps or flats at the beginning of a song that appears after the clef and before the time signature.  This symbol indicates which piano keys will be sharp or flat for the rest of the song. In other words, the key signature determines the home

If you want a short answer, a comfortable standard female vocal range is from about A4 to G5. That’s maybe with a little training from a voice teacher, and different people might feel more comfortable towards the top of that range and others towards the bottom. But pretty much every female voice is physically capable of these notes with some help, and with focused study, it’s very possible to sing well above and below that range! The most important thing to remember is that every voice i

Improvisation on the piano is a useful skill for any pianist. It adds creativity and imagination to your playing, tests your musical and theoretical knowledge, allows you to adapt to any situation, and is an impressive skill to wow others with. For many pianists though, even piano improvisation basics aren't intuitive skills, and require practice to develop. Just as constant sight-reading will improve your reading ability, constant practice in improvising is important to improve your skill. W

The circle of fifths is an extremely helpful diagram. It is used to understand how keys, scales, and chords relate to one another. Sometime I refer to the circle of  fifths as “the mother ship” with my students, because the diagram really encompasses all of the basic elements of western harmony.   As a side note for more advanced readers, jazz players typically rearrange the  circle of fifths to a circle of fourths. They like the circle to move from C major (no  sharps or flats) to F

The word harmony is derived from the Greek word Harmonia, the goddess of harmony and concord. As its Greek origins imply, harmony means concord, agreement, or a joining together, which happens when two or more notes sound together in a pleasing combination. Harmonia’s counterpart, Eris, was the goddess of strife and discord, whose parallel in music, dissonance, happens when two or more sounding notes clash. Much like the goddesses of Greek mythology, harmony and its related sister, tonalit

If you’ve been a piano student or performer for any length of time, you’ve probably come across the terms “sonata” and “sonatina”. But, have you ever wondered to yourself, what's the difference between sonatas vs. sonatinas? These musical forms have been around since the early 16th century, but even after over 400 years of existence, there is still no conclusive definition for either of them. Musical scholars and performers alike have debated what these terms truly mean, and their

Test your knowledge of music with this innovative music theory quiz - and then keep reading to find even more fun quizzes you can take! A knowledge of music theory is absolutely indispensable to musicians. For beginners, it can seem intimidating, but experienced musicians will attest that theory is well worth the effort needed to master it. While you can certainly acquire proficiency on an instrument without a knowledge of theory, you’ll miss out on the depth of understanding that

Have you ever wanted to learn how to play the piano, but felt intimidated by all of those black and white keys? You're not alone! The piano keyboard layout can be tricky for beginners to understand. Fortunately, this helpful guide will make learning the basics a breeze. By understanding the layout of the keyboard, you'll be able to start playing simple songs in no time. So what are you waiting for? Let's get started! Did you know that understanding the full piano keyboard layout is not

Music existed for thousands of years, long before notation came into being. The creation of music speaks to an innate human need, for it has existed for almost as long as humans have been in existence: there are prehistoric cave paintings illustrating instruments, as well as discoveries of actual prehistoric instruments such as a bone flute from the Stone Age. Music was also an important aspect of ancient civilizations, like the Egyptian and classical Greek civilizations, and was used for

Mention the subject of improvisation around a pianist, and you’ll get a mixture of intrigue, excitement, and exasperation. Some pianists love the idea. Others are terrified of the idea of playing notes that are not on the page. If you’re intrigued, you may be wondering how to improvise on the piano.  The amazing thing is that improvisation is no different than learning to speak a language. However, pianists sometimes get frustrated because they think that this specific language is so