GuitarSam eZine Volume 29 March 2001   Subscribe Email us Back to Index

Edly: Music Theory

What is music theory, anyway? You hear so much about it, but does anybody really know what it is? Edly does!   Scales? Chords? Keys? Ear-training? Modes? Toads?   If you need help connecting the musical dots or playing musical works, send us your best (or dumbest) questions, and we'll have Edly, one of Earth's leading music theory experts, field the responses. Edly, Would you mind answering another question for me? This one is definitely about something that's been tougher for me to grasp. It's tough to even verbalize in the form of a question. This has to do with the chord symbols floating about the bars I encounter on sax music. It's not to be confused with how chords are actually written out for piano music. I see that sax sheet music often has the chord progressions above the bars. Of course that music will also have a key signature. But the key signature doesn't really have any effect on reading the chords do they? I mean, a chord written above, such as Dm, already specifies the root as D. If I'm playing the piano (or arpeggiating with the sax), won't I simply hit the the notes together as D, F#, A? Or am I supposed to bring the key signature into the equation? For example, if the key signature was Eb, would that make Dm a relative designation (like IIm)? In other words would the root then be based on where D lies on Eb relative to its location on C major(like F A C I think)? If the chords are played as written, regardless of the key signature, then how would you transpose them to a different key? Say if the piece was in C and you wanted to transpose it to Eb, what would D, F#, A of Dm then become? I knew nothing about music until I picked up your book so the fact that I can even phrase a music question is testimony to the efficacy of your book. I've come a long way. ________________________ Chris, Very cool question!! But before I answer it, let's fix two mistakes: Dm is D F A, not D F# A. And a Dm chord in the key of Eb would be a viim, not a iim--you analyze chords relative to the key signature of the song, not relative to C. To boil down your question: Does the key signature have any effect on reading the chords? No. A Dm is D F A regardless of the key signature. Short answer to your transposition question: A Dm in the (original) key of C would be an Fm in the (new) key of Eb. It's iim in both cases. You've come a long way baby. I'd encourage you to reread the book, though. Most people miss a lot in one reading. Maybe it's my fault as the author, or maybe it's just due to the amount of material covered (or maybe it's like a good movie: the second time through, you notice all those nifty details you missed the first time). In your case, I recommend reviewing the chapters on chord construction, major scales and keys, diatonic chords, and transposition. Your transposition question is answered more fully there. Edly www.edly.com

Two great books from Ed Roseman www.edly.com Edly's Music Theory for Practical People Edly Paints the Ivories Blue  To get your head keyed in the right direction, visit Edly's website "Musical EdVentures" at www.edly.com  Beam your music theory questions to us at askedly@guitarsam.com

ISSN: 1529-0956 Library Of Congress, Washington D.C. USA
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