Hey there! This is the last video in the “Theory in the DAW” series. Thank you so much for joining me on this journey. In this final episode – I show you how to configure your default set so that you can open the DAW and start composing fast! I’m sad to say goodbye for […]
Lesson Category: music theory
Lesson 7: Harmonic Rhythm & Counterpoint
In this video I provide a surface-level understanding of counterpoint and harmonic rhythm. These are very heady topics that usually take up entire years’ worth of study at university boiled down to a few minutes, so don’t by any means assume that this will give you a complete, accomplished understanding of the subject. However, included […]
Lesson 6: Melody 101
In this video I provide an overview of the definition and composition of melody and melodic content. Melody is an extremely broad topic – so we’re focusing on Melody in the diatonic and tonal context. Hopefully you learn what you need to in order to compose your own melodies! As a bonus, I’m providing a […]
Lesson 5: Chord Progressions 101
In this video, I take you through the basic chords of the diatonic scale; “based on tonal gravity”. If you haven’t seen Lesson 1 on tonality, or the video on intervals (Lesson 4), they’re essential to understanding the concepts in this video. The producer Ratatat would be an excellent use-case for diatonic chord progressions, […]
Lesson 3: Keys and Tonality
This video should provide an overall understanding of what keys and scales are and how they determine a song’s “tonality”; as well as how you can manipulate them to fit your song’s mood. Once you learn the fundamental tonic scales, I recommend saving MIDI clips based on specific keys that you can quickly grab later […]
Lesson 2: Counting Rhythm and Meters
This video should provide an overall understanding of what rhythm and meter are and how they determine a song’s “flow” and “feel”; as well as how you can manipulate them to your advantage! Most of music today is very “rhythm-driven”, which means understanding how to count time signatures and use beat patterns are crucial. Watch […]
Lesson 1: Creating the "center" and "balance" of the song
This video should provide a very basic understanding of what tonality and atonality are and how they determine a song’s “centeredness” and “balance”; and also a general sense for how to hear and feel a song’s gravity. This might sound like hippie – dippie BS; but it’s a large part of all functional harmony and […]