Category Archives: Theory

How’s your Transposition?

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I started learning a language just before the pandemic began.  If you hadn’t already sussed it, I’m a bit of a word nerd.  I like knowing words and where they come from – and how that same thought can be represented in another way.  When you make those translations while speaking, they need to be rapid and seamless.  Then you can hear the sameness of the thought and the slight differences in the translation.  In effect, switching the language transposes the thought.

When we’re playing, sometimes we need to do the same thing and transpose to a new key.  Why?  Well, we can transpose to play with someone else (e.g., all the Bb instruments), or to support a singer, or to fit a tune on your harp (so you can use all of it without “running out of strings” or because you just like the sound of it better in a different key.

Are you thinking “ugh”?

Transposing is a very useful skill that will serve you well.  It’s a good workout for your brain.  It’s good for building flexibility in your playing too. It’s also intimidating to many – after all, if you’ve not learned how or just haven’t practiced, it can leaving you feeling be uncomfortable and embarrassed.

Before I go on, let’s start with – what is transposing?  It’s a big, scary word for moving from one key to another.  For us as harpers, it’s actually not too scary and certainly less work than for some other instruments.  We just have to move to the new lever/pedal setting and everything else stays the same – the fingering, the spacing.  In fact, the only things that change after resetting the lever/pedal are the look of your finger on the string and the pitches.

I won’t lie to you – when you start trying to transpose, it’s challenging (that’s my fancy way of saying it’s harder than lots of other things).  Your poor brain is going to try to “translate” every note, one at a time. Often, at the beginning, you might just be guessing.  But like everything else we do, taking a moment to think will help us become better and get faster sooner.  All of this will also help you become more facile with theory (or it will come to you sooner if you already know your theory and how to apply it).

The hard way – that so many people go through – is to identify the relationship of the key you know the tune in and the key you’re transposing to.  But don’t fall for thinking that a small move is easier than a bigger one.  It’s easy to think that moving from C to D (for instance) will be uncomplicated – after all you just have to move up a string.  But that’s why it’s hard – you have to second guess every note, keeping track of which is the “old note” and which is the “new note”.  If the new key is farther away, then you have to “translate” every note.  If you move from C to A, each note is now a 6th above (or 2 below the old right note) so you have two opportunities to second guess – did you do the math right (in one direction) and the close problem (in the other direction) – ugh.

Do it the hard way often enough and you’ll be glad stop and think first!  Because you already know what you need – the intervals are what matters.  If you know what the intervals sound like (yup, ear training!), you’ll be even closer to making the transposition easily.  The fingering and patterns will help solidify the move when you transpose.

While you can think about all this when you’re transposing, imagine how far ahead you’d be if, when you learned the tune, you’d been thinking about the intervals and relationships, rather than just the note names and sequences!  Same thing with the harmonies.  Rather than memorizing the chord names, think about their place in the scale and the chord progression.  If you know I, VI, V – you’re on the way.  Learning the chord progression as a set of relationships will make it so much easier to remember.

If all that makes sense to you – now practice doing it.  Take some well-loved, well learned, often played tune, and put it in another key.  Keep at it – the more you practice doing it, the easier it will become. 

If all the above is so many words that don’t make sense to you, don’t worry.  They will.  They just might need to percolate.  That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t also try it.  The practice is what will help get it into your head.

Before you say, “yeah, yeah, whatever” – think about your next harp circle or session.  There will be some tune you love that you want to play along with everyone, but they’re all playing it in the key of Qb mijor, so you’re left either sitting there wishing you were playing OR you’ll employ your new skill and tuck in!  What tune do you love that everyone else plays in some other key?  How are you going to transpose it?  Let me know in the comments!

Have you got the Temperament?

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So, we’ve talked about the tools you might use to tune and a few approaches to assuring you tune all your strings to particular pitches.  But last week, Sara brought up a good point that I had been dancing around. 

Why?  Because it’s easy, but not simple.  What?!

So, let’s start with a caveat.  I’m not an expert in tuning or the mathematics and music theory behind tuning.  I’ll share what I know but please understand that this will be a skimming of the topic*.  Here goes.

The Social Component.  You might not have known there’s a social component to tuning, but there is.  We use A= 440Hz as we mentioned before.  But why?  Because this is the current convention.  Translation,

“We do it that way because that’s the way we do it.” 

In times past A = 432Hz, and who knows what it was before that (ok, someone probably knows, but I don’t).  This consensus on what “in tune” means is the social component of tuning – we’ve agreed,  we’ve come to consensus that we will use this standard (A = 440Hz) to tune our instruments. 

After all, why do we tune at all?  Because making music is social – and we want to enjoy playing together. 

Having said that, there are other elements of this social consensus.  More plainly, there is more than one “tuning system.”   These tuning systems “define” the scales you tune to.  There are loads of systems, and variants on them, and like every other human endeavor they have grown, developed, and changed (morphed?) over time.  Here are the two Temperaments you are most likely to bump into playing the harp.  I’m presenting them here as fait accompli but realize that they are all defined through and across music, philosophy, culture, and history.

Equal Temperament.  I’ve started here because this is the system you have likely always used (and unless you have changed a setting on your tuner, it’s what most electronic tuners use).  This system has the twelve tones that match the keys on the piano (C, C#, D, D#, E, F, F#, G, G#, A, A#, B) and the pitches are distributed equally.  This is the tuning that makes it possible for the piano to be played in each major key**.  The upside is that everyone can play together.  The downside is that when you smush the pitches like that, they are no longer mathematically “correct” and when this was first used, it “sounded funny” (or more likely slightly off because when they did that, the notes all moved a little, sort of like kindergartners shifting around in line for cookies).  If you’re not sure, look at your tuner (or at the paperwork) –  it likely says it’s equal temperament.

Pythagorean Temperament.  You’ve heard of the Pythagorean Theorem?  Pythagoras thought that all beauty could be captured in mathematical ratios – the right triangle, the movements of the planets, and the arrangement of pitches.  This tuning is based on tuning “pure 5ths”.  This is the tuning you might use if you worked with a tuning fork.  This is the temperament that is easiest to tune by ear – you listen for the glorious pure 5th (remember – an in-tune 5th will “ring” and be audibly in tune.  You can’t miss it – and if you’re not hearing the ringing, you’re not in tune yet).  Each pitch will be near its cousin from equal temperament but only the octaves and 5ths will be exactly the same.    

There are other Temperament Systems including Meantone, all the variations of Equal Temperament (the 12 tone we’ve talked about above and including a lot of others counting up to 72 tone, Well Temperament (which Bach used to make a set of tunes for all 24 major and minor scales available on the keyboard at the time), Just Intonation (which I’ve never run into but is a thing), and many more.  Remember too that the temperament selected might have more to do with the music being played (renaissance had a different sense than modern) or the instrument being played (remember, it’s hard to retain theory that doesn’t apply to you!). 

Here’s a suggestion – play around with your tuning and see what you think.  If you’re typically using Equal Temperament, try Pythagorean and see what you think.  You might make lemon face because, it will be slightly different.  It probably will sound out of tune, but if you’re interested, give it a try.

Which type of tuning do you use and why?  “Because that’s what I was taught” is a perfectly good answer!  Did you try another approach?  What did you think?  Let me know in the comments.

 

*If you’re interested, there are many books on tuning, but one of my favorites is Lies My Music Teacher Told Me by Gerald Eskelin.  It’s a really fun book, and a short read, weighing in under 175 pages, but it is dense going – and having an interest in math will help.   Alternately, you can choose the path many do and stick with the theory you have learned by rote from teachers who have learned by rote.  Another way to say that is,

It has always been thus….

You will do fine if you want to keep it there, but read the book if you’ve always wondered.

 

** if the wording starts to be a little stilted, please note that is me attempting to be correct in an area that I don’t fully understand (nor do purport to), and is language that many musicians have bandied about but is actually quite technical – kind of like you call it a bruise but your physician calls it a hematoma – they’re both right, but one is more technically accurate than the other!

Theory – All in Good Time

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The other day I was torturing one my students with an element of theory.  She didn’t look happy about it.

I’ve seen wet cats look happier.  

In my usual way, I blathered on and one and on about the point and what it meant and why it was important and how it could inform playing.  You know, the usual.

Her eyes glazed over.

The learning had to be salvaged (because contrary to popular belief, I really do not do this to torture anyone, but rather to prime the pump). 

So, I followed all those words, thoughts, and deeds with this,

“Don’t worry – you’re not going to remember any of that anyway”

And I meant it (I’m motivational like that).

Recently I decided that my piano technique needed woodshedding.  So I broke out a couple of books that I loathe – but keep, because, like Kaopectate, Mercurochrome, or VapoRub, they are horrid, but serve a purpose.  In the margin, in the hand of my teacher, are notes that I’d forgotten about.  They were all theory elements, put there to help me learn.

She had the right end of that stick!  She didn’t teach theory by rote out of a book.  Her point was that it will all come in good time – learning the rules by using them.  She told me things and left them to marinate.  I hadn’t realized until then how much of my teaching I had learned from her!

Because I dump a lot of theory into heads, knowing that it may not (yet) be comprehensible.  But also knowing that, while most of it will flow in one ear and out the other, little bits will stick.  You know, like glitter.  But you won’t even know it’s there, marinating, waiting for the time when it will all make sense.

In its own good time, other bits of theory glitter will also stick.  It will be a gradual process (like the formation of sedimentary rock).  But as time passes – learning, playing, picking up more glitter – some of the glitter will catch the light.

And suddenly, some arcane theory thing I droned on and on and on about in the past will, in a flash of glittery brilliance, become an insight with clarity and usefulness!

And I’m ok with that.  Because developing your own insight in a glittery flash may require a good long time, but it will be more meaningful – and sensible – than if you had memorized a bunch of theory facts.

There will be things that become understandable rather quickly and easily.  And other things will take (what feels like) eons.  Those things will make you work for it, tease you into thinking you’ve got it before kicking sand in your face, before suddenly it catches the light, glints and then clicks and makes sense.

That’s ok.  Remember, there are loads of things in theory you might never learn (because you won’t use them, or they don’t apply to your instrument (I give you alto clef as an example)).  So you might not develop an encyclopedic knowledge of music theory.  Oh well.

What you will get – all in good time – is a strong understanding of the rules you can use.

In a steady stream of content that may seem incomprehensible, your brain becomes primed to learn something useful now, and a little more later when the pieces begin to click together like legos.

So hang in there, keep learning, and feel free to marinate.  I’ll keep telling you stuff and you’ll get there – all in good time.  DO you have a theory thing still eludes you?  Or an insight that came, like the glint of glitter?  I’d love to hear about it in the comments!

Do You Count? 

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I often think about tunes in “layers”.  All the layers are important, but some are easier to master than others.  The layers include the notes, the fingering, the phrases.  And then there’s the counting.  There are loads of elements that define the music, but time might be the most challenging to really get learned and honed – to get right. 

Do you Count?

When you get to brass tacks, music is really a sequence of sounds and not-sounds (rests) over time.  And so, to be true to the melody, share the message, and communicate with our listeners, we have to keep the count.  

Sometimes, as harp players, we become inured to the silence – we get so little of it with our wonderful resonant instruments. Harps love to keep on playing and that lovely sound “hanging around” may make us lazy – it may feel like it will be easy to get away with not counting.  But that is an illusion.

Counting can be a challenge when you first begin to learn a tune.  There is so much to learn and all of it important.  We have to keep the important stuff in mind – actively use it.  Time is challenging but it can be so rewarding!  It will help your audience follow your message, it will make playing with other musicians a greater joy, and it will help ensure your tune is what the original composer meant it to be.

Previously, I have said that I don’t advocate rigid adherence to the beat.  That wasn’t really accurate.  Rather, it is essential to know that timing of the piece and work within that.  With poignant airs you might bend the time to build the expression, but that works best by manipulating the times. Laments need to be sorrowful, but it should never be lamentable!  But the difference will be in how you deal with the time. 

It is essential that you learn to count.  Ok, I know you can already count.  You have to learn to count while you’re playing…and keep counting, maintaining your counting throughout your playing. Only when you have mastered this tool of communication can you begin to modify its application as appropriate to tell your story.  I know counting can be hard – it’s one more thing to do while you’re also trying to remember what notes come next, which fingers to use, that you need to breathe, etc.  Pesky layers!

So how do you add counting to that task?  Carefully.

First, start slowly.  This really is another task you will have to perform while also doing all the other things you have learn. Counting is another thing you have to think about as you bring the tune together – make sure you go slowly enough that your brain can keep up!

Second, practice.  Counting while you’re playing takes practice.  You want to practice counting enough that it becomes automatic – no matter what you’re playing or where you are in learning it (just starting, polishing, anywhere in between!).  One method I suggest is to include this in your practice away from the harp.  An easy way to practice is while you’re walking or running.  This gives you a physical beat to follow so you can work on counting.

Third, be consistent.  You can’t practice counting the tune once and be done!  Make practicing counting a regular part of your practice.  If you really are not counting at all – start with simple tunes you already know.  As it gets easier, move on to more challenging tunes and tunes you are learning.  You will get better!

Finally, always be working on it.  Once you can consistently and accurately count, start making things more complicated and related to other music.  Remember to count to the smallest note value (e.g., the eighth notes if they’re present or 16ths – you will have to do some analysis).  Use whatever counting device works for you – vocables, fruits and veg – whatever works!

Of course, there’s (always) more to the story, so send me your questions and share your insights in the comments.  In the meantime, stand up for your music – make sure you count!

Faster! Faster?

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OSAS is this week so I’ll be looking forward to your comments but might be a little slower to respond.  Hope you join us, if not this summer, next year when we should all be together again!

Before you start reading, you might want to have a cup of tea (or coffee) to hand.  We’re being serious this week.

Time – it seems so simple but the more you think about it, the more incongruous it seems to become.  But as musicians, time is our bread and butter.  So you’d think we would understand it.  As I listen to people talk about it, though, I’m fairly sure we don’t.

What is she talking about this time?  Time – or more appropriately, time signatures.

I think this topic can be challenging to talk about.  Like so many elements of formal theory, when you read the dry text, it is quite complicated.  And when it’s time to introduce the concepts to new students, well – there are a lot of concepts and frankly, I seem to make a mash of it every time.  The top number, the bottom number, the relationship of the two.  The big numbers, the small numbers.  The math of all the notes.

It really can make you dizzy.

Time SignaturesAnd it’s clear that the topic is complex because I hear people say funny things…not that they mean to be funny.  But sometimes, people come out with the musical equivalent of “I want to be a veterinarian because I love children!” *

Take, for instance the relationship between time signature and tempo.  I shake my head when time and tempo become conflated. Because, honestly, one has absolutely nothing to do with the other.

The time signature is also called the meter signature.  This is because it tells you how you’re measuring and what you’re looking for.

Let’s look at everyone’s favorite – 4/4.  We know, practically by rote – we’re measuring in quarter notes and there are four in each measure.  But does that tell us how fast?  Nope.  The tune could be a reel (fast) or a strathspey (a little slower).  It could be Sam Smith’s I’m Not the One (a ballad at 80 bpm) or Scorpions’ Rock You Like a Hurricane (124 bpm) or Aretha Franklin’s Think (at 220!).  All the same time signature but clearly really different tempos and tunes.

What about 6/8?  Same thing – we have slow tunes in 6/8 like Skye Boat Song (at about 70 bpm) but we also have jigs in 6/8 (at 116 or so).  And if you’re so inclined, Queen’s We Are the Champions (at 95 bpm) or Blondie’s Call Me (at 142 bpm).

So, the time signature tells you how you’re measuring (from the number on the bottom – 4 means we’re using quarter notes, 8 means eighth notes, 2 means half notes, etc.) and how many beats appear in each measure (the number on the top which can be just about anything, but there are some usual suspects like 2, 3, 4, 6, 9, 12, but others are possible).

So, the time signature really only tells you how to portion out the time, not how big or small the slices should be.  Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that a 6/8 tune will be twice as fast as a tune in 3 / 4.  They are different but not necessarily faster.  Similarly, even though a tune in 2/4 might feel like a runaway train, it is not necessarily faster than a tune in 4/4. 

With that sorted out, another time we can talk about how beats differ from pulses.  And we can also save how to know how fast to play a particular piece.  Do you sometimes get sucked into conflating meter and tempo?  Let me know in the comments how time signature trips you up!

* Slight modification to the song lyric by Julie Brown www.juliebrown.com/

Theory Moment – Noodling Support

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So, we’re beginning week three of our composition challenge. How’s it coming along?

Hopefully you’ve found some stuff you like in your noodling and have begun to string some of those ideas together. And hopefully you’re enjoying the creating and not pooh-pooh-ing every idea you have generated!

Some of you may be ready to keep going in your compositions and to add some harmonies. There are lots of ways to do this. You could generate countermelodies or simple harmonies. Or you might want to stick in some chords to build harmonization. Here’s where being familiar with music theory could help you along.

Come out from under the bed. Music theory isn’t scary! It sounds scary, but it really is just a way to talk about what we already know (yes, of course, we could make it scary – but why?!).

What might help you with your noodling composition? Maybe knowing what scale you’re using?  Is it one of the frequently used scales (major or minor or one of the other modes)? Or have you used (or made) a different scale? Once you know that, you can begin to fit some chords that will enhance your melody*.

Scales are defined by the relationships of the notes in them.

Whaaa?

The intervals (whole and half) are the way scales are “measured”.  Intervals are the distance between notes (if that doesn’t mean anything to you, no worries, it will eventually – you just keep noodling…and reading!).  So, a Major scale is Whole, Whole, Half, Whole, Whole, Whole, Half. The Major scale is also called the Ionian mode. Meanwhile, a (natural) Minor scale (or Aeolian mode) is defined as Whole, Half, Whole, Whole, Half, Whole, Whole. The Dorian mode is another popular scale which starts on the second with the intervals Whole, Half, Whole, Whole, Whole, Half, Whole. A number of traditional tunes from Scotland, Ireland, England (and others) are Dorian. We’ll stop (for now) with the Mixolydian mode which starts on the fifth and is defined as Whole, Whole, Half, Whole, Whole, Half, Whole (note it’s very close to the major scale). This is the bagpipe scale so loads of Scottish (and Irish) tunes are in this scale.

What about the chords? Well, that’s sort of up to you, but if you were looking for a “rule of thumb” you might consider that for the Major (Ionian) scale, you might like using the I (root/tonic), IV (the fourth), and the V (the fifth). You could actually use this for everything, and it’ll probably work.  But if you’re clearly in the Minor (Aeolian) scale, you might try the I, the VII, and the vi. And if you’re in Mixolydian, maybe the I and the VII.

Of course, there is no wrong. There might be jarring or sweet or “interesting” or perfect or harsh. This is when it’s time for your trusty recorder. Get your ideas down and listen to them over and over and over. Do they actually sound like you thought they did? You might find that what started as jarring becomes less harsh and more interesting as you listen to it more – all because you’ve become accustomed to it.  And you might find that what seemed perfect is actually a little uninteresting…

So don’t throw out ideas. Capture them. Nurture them. Let them marinate in your ear and in your mind before you decide what to do with them.

What have you heard? What did you do? Did you modify your growing melody or it’s developing harmony? Let me know in the comments.

* this post is not meant to be a comprehensive theory lesson. There are many theory resources available in bookshops and online. But this isn’t meant to be an excuse to hide in a book – go forth, be bold, make mistakes, make memories, have fun, just enjoy…the theory words can be fitted later – just make some music!

Putting the Ah in Ostinato

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Ostinato as meditation – you know, like in Ahhhh-stinato!

One thing I love about ostinato is its origin – it is from the Italian…for obstinate!  Which is exactly what you need to be to get this very useful element locked into your head and your fingers.  An ostinato is a pattern that repeats and can be a repetition of pitch or of rhythm.  And while some people find them terrifying, there’s another way to look at them.

The fabulous Maeve Gilchrist is a wizard of ostinato (check out her book Rhythm and Hand Separation Exercises and Etudes Book 1).  She has worked hard to master all sorts of patterns and she is rock solid.  One of the things I love about her playing is the unexpected things she can weave over that bass pattern – and you the listener can just sit back and enjoy, buoyed and comforted by that underlying rock of sound.

Because ostinato is difficult time consuming to get solid, many people avoid it.  But it totally worth the time.  A real challenge though, is to first focus on the ostinato itself.  It is very easy to think you’ve got it when it’s not quite there.  And it does take a little grit and determination – because it’s like other foundational elements – it has a hard slog in the middle where you feel stuck.  But you will get there if you keep at it. 

Nope, I’m not going to tell you it’s worth the time because it’s useful or builds strong finger or hones your rhythm (although it does).

Ostinato is a great tool, once nailed down, to check out.

What?!?!?

Yup, think of it as a meditative thing.  Once you have got the basic idea inculcated, you don’t really need to watch the pot (so to speak).  And that frees up space capacity in your brain so you can do one of a couple of other things:

  1. Just rock the ostinato and let your mind wander around.  Make it a meditation.  Really.
  2. What might be cool if you put that pattern with it?  Where would you go?  How might you get there?  This could lead to noodling and eventually to a great improv, some really useful vamp or an entirely new composition (which you could also do by looking at great art, a la last week’s post).
  3. Once you have the pattern down, you can mess around with the pattern itself – see where that leads.  You might find more cool stuff down that rabbit hole. 

Start with an easy pattern – maybe an Alberti bass or find a pattern from an technique book), jut to get the idea.  Keep working it.  Maybe think about it as you noodle on the 4 week challenge we set last week.  How might you noodle over that pattern?  Give it some time and you’ll see how it can become hypnotic – go with it.  Let it ride, find the ahhhhh and see where you end up.

And let me know where you end up in the comments below!

Theory Moment (redux) – Get it your way

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Last week, we talked about why theory is good for you.  But I know that not all of you believed me.  So, this week, I’m going to show you that you’ve got this – but you might have to gut it out!

But what if you don’t feel the need to share your musical ideas? Do you think that leaves you off the hook?  Of course not! But there is always hope and it comes in two bite sized pieces.

First, you know more theory than you know you know.  At those workshops we talked about before, they handed out sheet music at the end – could you read it?  I’m not quibbling over whether you’re an expert reader or if you should be sitting at the red bird reading table.  You can read it!  So you know those rules (or at least you know a large number of them).  You also know when you play a chord that just doesn’t “fit” – that’s the rules kicking in.  That “not fitting” is cultural and learned – it’s where a rules violation occurs.

So, you know those rules.  You have learned them and use them every day.  And they serve you when you’re playing music written and arranged by other people.  Give yourself credit!  (BTW – you know that to move past the red bird table – you just need to practice your reading, right?). 

Yes, you can just keep at it, learning how chords come together in their various forms, finding what sorts of intervals appeal to you (and which don’t), identifying sorts of chord progressions speak to you – all of that is just various ways of getting to know the rules.

You can experiment, explore, poke around.  You can thrill at sounds you love and cringe at stuff you don’t.  You can use your harps as a (much loved) tool and work the music until you’re happy.   You can record or make notes. And those notes can be in any form you like.  I once wrote a tune on an airline napkin with a relative scale so I wouldn’t forget it.  I have no idea now why I didn’t bother to sketch in the staff.

You can be a theory ninja – at your own level, for your own purposes.  But what if you want to make your own arrangements?  Or write them down? Well you can get out your theory book.

And whether you take the studious approach of learning theory in school or you take the hands-on approach of learning the rules doesn’t matter – as long as you learn the rules.

Regardless of your path, the point is to better understand the underlying structure of the music, it’s movement and flow, and to render the tune the way you mean to – with more ease and perhaps more confidence.  The road you choose to get there should be a personal choice.  The assumption is that if you “gut it out” you will work harder (and that might be true) but you may develop a deeper understanding if you feel those rules out rather than read them from a book – we all learn our own way.

Keep working on your theory – read the material and gut out the relationships – so long as you keep going!  Get your theory the best way for you.  Take a risk, explore, enjoy.

Theory Moment

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Theory is one of those things that people love to hate.  After all, it is the grammar of music.  The rules.  Written down.  To be learned, memorized, and used.  Theory is the liver and onions of being a musician!

Some people love liver and onions.  And it’s good for you*.

But for most of us, theory is hard and unapproachable.  It’s challenging to read.  It’s confusing to read.  It’s boring to read…and if you have to sit through lectures – ugh.  It’s torture to do those listening exercises.  And if you’re not formally trained (by which I mean forced to learn it), it may keep growing into a behemoth of stuff you are going to put off as long as possible.  Maybe you think you’ll hold your musical breath until it’s over.  If you find yourself in a workshop where the presenter starts spouting off theory, you just try to ride the wave, bide your time – does it really matter what key the tune is in? Don’t you just need to know which levers to set?  Why do you need to know that stuff?To be honest, there are loads of reasons to learn theory.  After all, it is the rules of our game.  Like golf, football, or figure skating, the rules are complex and complicated.  But just as a thorough understanding and knowledge of the rules is one of the things that distinguishes a great sports player, that knowing the rules of music will help you be a better harp player. 

Have you ever sat in a workshop and felt like you didn’t understand what was being said?  Do you have that weird feeling like, although there are harps and people you recognize…it also feels like you’re watching a foreign language film – with missing subtitles?  Knowing your theory makes you part of the club.  The people in the club don’t mean to exclude you (ok actually, unfortunately, sometimes they do, but it has been my experience that often those are the people who only think they know stuff).  It’s ok – you can learn that stuff (no really, you can!).  Knowing the rules is your passport to getting into the “club”. 

These rules of theory serve to create a language of music.  And that language allows people who know the rules to talk to – and to understand one another. They can easily share their musical ideas with loads of people…and be accurately understood.  They can have an impact!  And that’s kind of important.  Especially if you want to get as much from your musical life as you can – each workshop, each lesson, each harp circle, and each performance.

And if you want to share your ideas, it is helpful to speak the language.  It’s certainly easier than waving your arms making vague finger shapes in an effort to tell others what you’re thinking!

There are a number of books on theory if you want to study it yourself.  One of my favorites is Music Theory Made Easy by David Harp (and not just because of his name).  No, it’s not spectacular reading, but it is a handy reference.  I also like the Music Theory For Dummies (go figure) and I found the Alfred books while, if not approachable, at least they’re useful**. 

It’s true that knowledge is power.  I fought learning and studying this stuff for a long time. But once I had studied a little, things began to fall into place.  And once some things fell into place in my head, playing actually became easier…well, a little easier!  Whether it’s being more familiar with well used chord progressions, making better phrasing, or building sets that make sense, every little scrap of theory you pick up, encode, and use will move you a little farther along your journey

I hope you can see that actually studying theory may help you play better because you will have a better understanding and will start from a more knowledgeable place.  Do you have a reference you prefer?  Let me know what it is in the comments.

*  please don’t start a word war about nutrition – you might have noticed that I’m not a nutritionist.  It’s an analogy.

** these are suggestions and the links are provided so you can find the books if you want.  I’m not an affiliate, I won’t get any money if you buy the book, I just want you to know what I’m talking about.

Speaking Theoretically – Inversions

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I know, I have said the “T” word (theory). But you’re still reading, so that’s a good sign! And you know that when something starts with the “T” word, you might not enjoy it, but it will probably serve you (and sooner than later). So, let’s just wade in.

I received a nice compliment the other day when someone noted that I never play a tune the same way, even in the repeats. This struck me because I had just been thinking about how I needed to really work on changing things up while playing so tunes won’t get stale to the listener! While thinking through the juxtaposition of these comments, it became clear that the space between was based on our different perceptions of the chords that underlie the tune. And that’s how we ended up here in the “T” zone.

There is an easy way to change up the accompaniment and harmony (typically in the left hand) so you to will never play something the same way every time. But it does require that you not only know some theory, but that you practice it too!

You know this stuff – let’s just make it front of mind! Let’s work in the key of C major (it works in every key, but let’s stay with a relatively simple example).

First we have the triad – in C that will be C – E – G (played with 3 – 2 – 1). This is called the “Root” position and the “name” of the scale is in the root position. This is a nice solid chord and gets used a great deal. However, after a while, you might want something new. So what to do?

Well, we could move to the “First Inversion” in which we take the Root note and pop it on the top of the chord. So now we have E – G – c (we moved the C off the bottom and replaced on the top). Listen to that – you can hear that it’s the same, but different. So now you have another option.

But only one option is just not going to be enough! So we can move the third (which is now on the bottom) up to the top – and now we have the second inversion! You’ll note that this again sounds the same, and yet has a really different “ear – taste”.

Go sit at your harp (you don’t fool me, I know you are reading and haven’t actually heard this yet!) and play these inversions (they are in the graphic if looking at the dots will help you process this). You can work your way up the harp – start by playing the Root, then reposition and play the first inversion, and then move again and play the second inversion. And it might sound a little “off” so go ahead and move the 5th to the top – and now you’re back to the root, just an octave higher.

Now, play through again and really listen to the differences between the inversions – each of them has it’s own “flavor”. See which ones you like or which ones evoke specific moods or feelings. With practice, you’ll remember which is which and you’ll be able to match that to the feeling you want to invoke with a specific tune. Of course this is more likely with an air but fast tunes also benefit with some thinking about the feeling the chord imparts to the tune.

If you haven’t done this before, you might have to work a little bit to move between the inversions. But with a little practice you’ll be able to make those movements easily. And with that practice, you will get faster at remembering which notes are included and which notes go where. The exercise can be blocked chords – Root — > 1st Inversion — > 2nd Inversion — > root (either the octave above or where you started – it’s up to you). Just remember to place, play, move, and place the next shape. When you’re solid on these blocked chords you’ll be ready to move onto broken or arpeggiated versions.

Once you’re comfortable with the inversions themselves, you can start inserting them into tunes you already know. Replace your same ol’-same ol’ root chords with the inversion you like and listen to the difference. Play around – you can also get out of the inverted triad and use ideas that might come up as you play. You could use a 10th or play just the 3rd – you get the idea. Find the things you like and work them into the tunes you play.

What do you like best? Share your ideas in the comments below.