Music Theory

Five months in and I still couldn't read music. Every song I learned was from watching YouTube tutorials, copying finger positions. It worked but I was completely dependent on tutorials. If nobody made a video for a song I wanted, I was stuck. Finally sat down to learn notation. Took maybe three weeks of 10-15 […]

Recorded myself playing around month four. Thought I sounded pretty good. Listened back and wanted to cry. The notes were right. The rhythm was a disaster. Rushing through easy parts. Slowing down on hard parts. No consistent tempo. Sounded like I was having a small stroke while playing. Here's what nobody emphasizes enough: rhythm is

Month three. I could play C, G, and F chords. But I had no idea why those notes went together. Just memorized finger positions like phone numbers. Then someone showed me the formula and everything clicked. A chord is multiple notes played simultaneously. Most basic chords have three notes – these are called triads. The

First month of learning piano, someone told me to "play in the key of G." I nodded and played random notes. Had no idea what they meant. The problem with most theory explanations: they assume you already know things. They use terms to define other terms. It's circular. Let me try differently. Starting from actual

Eight months into learning piano and I still didn't know what "key" meant. Not the physical keys – the other kind. When someone said "this song is in the key of G," I'd nod like I understood. I did not understand. I avoided theory because it seemed boring. Abstract. Who needs theory when you can