Learning music theory seems to be one of the more common things musicians dread. This is understandable – there’s a lot of terminology, technical details, and memorization involved. As a musician who relies on mastery of music theory to play a variety of genres and songs with minimal preparation, I put together this post to summarize how hard it’s been to learn music theory and other important aspects of music theory that musicians should know.
Learning music theory is difficult, and requires similar amounts of dedication and commitment as learning to play an instrument. Learning the basics of music theory is much easier and can take a few months to years, depending on the individual.
So what exactly makes music theory hard, and why does it take so long to learn? Is it even worth it? From my experience, I’ve addressed these questions below!
What Aspects of Music Theory Are Hard to Learn?
Chords – there’s a lot of chord types to learn (major, minor, dominant, diminished, augmented). In jazz, chords have 7ths, 9ths, 11ths, and 13ths, complicating things even further. Every chord has at least three notes, inversions, and can be played in 12 different keys. It can take a while to get the hang of all the different possible combinations.
Scales – for each of the chords outlined above, there’s at least one associated scale (For major chords, there’s major scales, diminished chords have diminished scales, etc.). Some chords even have multiple scales (minor chords can be paired with melodic minor and harmonic minor scales). There’s also modes, in which a major scale is started and ended on a note other than the 1st note in the scale (C major scale starting on F makes a mode called lydian). There’s seven unique notes in a scale, and therefore seven different modes to learn as well. Again, a lot of possibilities that must be accounted for.
Rhythm – there’s quarter notes, eighth notes, triplets, all of which can be combined in unique ways. Time signatures can be played with any number of beats per measure, although the most common is four. Learning this terminology, as well as being able to play different rhythms and different time signatures can be challenging for musicians, especially when learning the more uncommon ones (try playing triplets in 7/4).
Terminology – there’s a lot of official terminology in classical music, and even more slang in other genres. To play classical music, you’ll need to know what the tempo denotations are so you know how fast to play the piece (lento, largo, allegro, etc.). Playing in a band, musicians will say things like ‘take the head’, ‘don’t miss the hits’, which can be confusing until you get the hang of all the lingo.
Phrasing – this mostly applies to classical music, which includes all sorts of symbols like slurs, staccato, marcato, and more. Classical musicians need to recognize the associated symbols on the page and what they mean. For other genres of music, I’ve found that phrasing terminology isn’t used as much, and musicians mostly phrase based on their own intuition and ear.
Reading music – again, this is the most important for classical musicians since all of their music is written out. However, I’ve also been in many bands of many genres of music that required me to read their charts. Learning which notes on the page correspond with which notes on your instrument is tricky, and being able to sight read music and understand written music quickly is a lifelong pursuit.
Is Learning Music Theory Important?
Learning music theory is very important for any musicians who hope to play genres other than classical, at a high level. For genres of music that don’t usually involve written music, music theory is required to determine what musicians should play at any given moment.
I’ll put it bluntly – unless you’re a savant – I believe you need a very deep understanding of music theory to be any good. Let’s say you want to play a popular song with your band – without music theory how would you communicate what chords the band should play? How would you determine what sections of the song need to played if you don’t know what they are? If you want to have a solo, how would you know what notes go with the chords? Or consider if you’re just trying to learn your favorite songs for fun, and you searched how to play them online. If you just get a list of chords for the verse, chorus, and bridge, you’d want to know the notes in each chord, and what a bridge is.
I play a lot of shows and gigs in which I have to play music that we come up with on the spot. Being able to pull off performances without rehearsal and preparation is a massive advantage I have, and I promise you that the only way I can do it is because I understand the music theory behind how songs are constructed, what kinds of chords they have, and how to know what notes to play in every situation.
And what about classical musicians? You’d better know how to read music, know which tempos correspond to which speeds, know the difference between legato and stacatto, and much more. The elements of music theory necessary for classical musicians are different than other genres, since classical composers handle the chords and harmony for you. However, classical musicians often still study those elements of music theory.
I should at least mention that there are some musicians who never had any music training or education, and still became very successful. One example I can think of was a drummer I used to play with in San Luis Obispo, in a funk band we called Soul’d Out. He was an incredible drummer, but he had to spend a considerable amount of time learning songs before rehearsal because he couldn’t understand what we were talking about. Every song we played, he had to learn completely by ear, on his own, and memorize the whole thing, every time. Because of this, he was at a considerable disadvantage to other drummers who knew music theory, or at least how to read music. Although he got by, I believe this is an exception to the rule.
Overall, an understanding of music theory is one of the important qualities that makes a piano player great.
How Long Does it Take to Learn Music Theory?
Learning music theory basics, including common chords, scales, and musical notation, can take a few months to a year. However, becoming a master of music theory is a life-long endeavor.
I started playing piano when I was 5, and it probably took me a couple years to learn how to read music. At around 8, I started learning my chords and scales, which took another year or two. I learned other music theory concepts like rhythm, form, terminology, etc, in bits and pieces over many years. I’m still learning new ways to apply chords and notes to music today.
Your journey will look different depending on your experience, maturity, and commitment to learning music theory. You may be more passionate about learning chords and scales and learn the basics in a few months, but take much longer to learn how to read music. When it comes to music theory, like learning an instrument, there’s always more to explore even after you’ve mastered the basics.
For further reading on the time required to learn piano, check out my article on the subject.
Can You Learn Music Theory on Your Own?
It is possible to learn music theory on your own using online resources. Some people may successfully master the fundamentals using videos and articles on the web, while others may need a teacher and in-person guidance.
There’s a lot of music theory related concepts that I learned online. For example, when I was curious about the dorian scale, I googled it and found how to construct the scale in each key. However, I already had a solid music theory background from my years of lessons as a kid. I recommend trying to learn on your own and seeing if you can do it without lessons. I wrote an article about how you can determine if lessons are worth it, which will help you decide which direction is best for you.
If you’re interested in teaching yourself to play piano, check out my full guide.
Is Music Theory Just Memorization?
Music theory is not just memorization, although memorization is an important part of music theory. Music theory can and should be applied to musical performance as well, which requires not only memorization but understanding and creativity.
There’s no way around it – music theory involves memorizing how to form your scales and chords, among many other things. However, music theory can also dictate how you use those chords and scales creatively in the song you’re playing. For example, a suspended chord, in which the third degree of the scale is replaced with the fourth degree, has a tense and unresolved sound. You’ll need to have your suspended chord formula memorized to use one, but you can also make creative decisions about when you want to insert unresolved sound in the song your playing.