Steve Vai once said that you should learn the rules before you break them. When I finally figured out music theory back in the day, I was actually more creative than I ever was before I learn the rules. It was this epiphany that exploded my creativeness and my journey towards progressive music. I highly recommend learning music theory but also learn how to break the rules.
Music theory isn't the theory of how you should make your music. It's the theory of how to tell other people to make your music. It's a language. The more you know about your language, the better you become at expressing how you feel.
A book I read about drawing (Harold Speed - The Practice and Science of Drawing) has a really good analysis of classical education approach vs "feel" when it comes to art. To summarize it from my biased interpretation/memory: The people who benefit from learning theory vastly outnumber the people who don't. Top-tier, best ever artists are almost always theory experts. There are some who don't know classical or theory aspects who succeed and have amazing, one-of-a-kind style but they are very rare. It's probably kind of arrogant to assume that you are one of them. If you are one of those people, you probably aren't questioning whether or not you need to know theory, because you're already doing your thing successfully. If you're questioning yourself at all, you will likely benefit from learning more.
there is also "talent". for example for drawing you need theory, feel, and TALENT. by talent I mean genetic enhancements like eye-hand-3D coordination which not all have at the fine motor skill to draw good. So you can study all the theory you want but if your eye-hand-3D fine motor coordination is not good you will not be Giotto or Michelangelo. Of all the fields in which talent comes to my mind as an additional requirement I would say: Drawing, sports (spatial 3D coordination), and maybe some kind of music (hear-brain coordination). But actually I think Drawing is really where I see a net difference between talent and non-talent. I mean is it really DIFFICULT to imagine 3D figures and painting if your brain is not born with the scheme to do it (and thats genetic). And some sports. Music is not like that, luckily
To me learning theory is like learning from the mistakes and success of artists who cane before us. You get to skip all of the wasted time just meddling until something sounds good.
That part made me smile. The combination of (tounge in cheek) badass metal attitude with deep knowledge makes it one of the most fun music theory demos I've seen :)
Taking a music theory college course forced me to compose full pieces of music on my own. Something I had never done before. I wrote songs with friends but never actually completed anything by myself. After this, I've become a more competent song writer not only because I have the tools to seize a moment of inspiration and build it into a song, but I also have the ability and confidence to write a full song on my own that I used to lack. But if you can write a good song without it, don't worry about it.
It depends on what someone wants to do with music , if you fancy more complex music , then music theory is a must , if you want to be a professional musician as well , but if you just want to jam and have some fun with yourself and stuff , then it is really pointless to learn something you will never use , some people like having fun with music theory , im not good yet in music theory but what i learned so far cleared a lot confusion and frustration away and made me more motivated to play and have more ideas , as they say "you dont know what you dont know " and that's the great thing about it in my opinion .
I've had this discussion with the drummer from my old band. He was nothing but theory. When it came to writing he'd often times find it difficult to accompany some of the material that I had written. I recall writing a piece of music that didn't fit into a box, but it sounded good. Rhythmically and tonally it made sense. Ultimately music theory is nothing more than stealing ideas from musicians that wrote some music over a century ago. That's when I told him that it's music theory, not music fact. That's the beauty of art. If you get locked into a left brain mindset it can become rudimentary and stale. There's another universe to be discovered. That's your voice.
Agreed except replace "stealing" with "learning". If you go the other way, everything is stealing - the very act plucking strings to make music would be stealing from whoever 1st discovered it. This extrapolates to all human endeavor. BTW, while were at it, and for the record: man does not, cannot, create - he discovers and manifests that which pre-exists as a possibility within the fabric of creation.
Learned some basic music theory allowed me to now play all over the neck, switching scales, playing arpeggios, building chord progression....still learning. I admit I am not very good by ears and I was stuck playing the same thing over and over when I was taking my bass. Now I can improvise for hours without getting bored. It made all the difference for me.
I am a self-taught beginner Bassist, Vocalist and all round artist. I fully agree as I have no other musicians to jam with due to over theorization. Just play it stop talking about playing. Stay Metal.
that's how I see it. I find it important to learn a lot of music theory, and be as adept at theory as possible, but don't ever let it define how you make music. Just like the rules of theory, theory itself should only serve as a guide, at least to me.
THRASH METAL & FUN RIFFS No he doesn’t. Because when he plays a diminished scale in his solo he is off key. I cringe whenever I hear it. But then again, it has become a Signature riff of his and I embrace that with him
I have classical and jazz music theory training (through school/private instruction/my own study). I teach all my guitar students some theory. I want them to have some understanding of stuff instead of them just memorizing shapes/patterns. If they want to more... we can dive into it, but I'm never gonna push it on someone. I started learning it at a very young age so I can't say what I would be like without it. My music is very neoclassic, symphonic and progressive (think Symphony X meets Epica/Nightwish), so I really need to know what the hell I am doing to make the orchestration work.
My teacher is the same way. I'm actually starting to learn more theory and while before I was basically going things at random and hoping they worked. After learning music theory and understanding the fretboard a bit more, it really showed in my playing.
Shred -Those cords right at the beginning were f'n rad! What were they? I'd like to analyze them. One should know enough theory to make them dangerous. You have a great channel, dude.
I play sax and I've studied tons of theory and jazz Harmony. It shows you how the chords relate to the scales and how it all works within the harmony of a tune. Then you can do all your extracurricular sorta things, crazy scales etc.as long as you resolve it in a cool way.. I think what hinders guitarists is not knowing the fretboard thoroughly. I know the diatonic modes and harmonic minor modes on guitar and can shred pretty good, sweep picking etc but I'm stuck because I don't know the neck as well as I should. Maybe do a video on tips of learning the guitar neck. I've seen a few on this topic but nobody has a method that is very usable to me. Anyways, thanks for the videos.
Theory is important for me. Because it lays a foundation for what I want to do structurally. But I don’t think about theory when I write. It’s all subconscious and part of my circuitry. But these lessons from Scott I find so refreshing and so much more of the Bach stuff I want to learn. Scott has broken paradigms for me. Haven’t found something this important musically in 10 years. Scott is the Shed Master 🤘 thank you
Well, try writing down your ideas without music theory! Back when i was still playing the guitar, i used to even wake up to good ideas for music which the only thing i could do was take my guitar and a tape recorder to keep it for later. Guess what, there were times i could not play it because i didn't know how to recreate the sound on guitar. If you can be a really good player without music theory, it's great. If you are a really good player with music theory, you may also support yourself financially by doing a a lot of different things involving music. It also depends on the music you play and your goals in life though.
@@ShredmasterScott Charlie Parker seems to have said “Master your instrument, Master the music, and then forget all that bullshit and just play.” Theory is a great tool in mastering music and your instrument. You just have to remember not to be a slave of formality. It's an advantage over others in every aspect. Sometimes though, simple melodies and harmony can also be amazing, this should not be forgotten.
Tengo muy poca comprensión sobre música pues nunca me puse a estudiar en razón, sólo tocar por tocar sin saber que demonios hacia y me frustra un poco no saber teoría musical pues siento que tengo Buenas ideas pero no puedo externalas de la manera en las que las pienso y siento. Creo que debe ser un equilibrio entre sensibilidad y conocimiento para poder hacer algo único y es necesario saber los fundamentos teóricos de cualquier arte o ciencia para lograrlo. Sorry about writting it in spanish but I had to spit it as I felt it. In resumen: It is necessary to know theory to develop our thoughts in the proper way, we need a balance between feeling and technique to achieve what we want in music.
The thing about music theory is that, it is just a way of making sense of how music works. Even though the likes of Lennon-McCartney and Eddie Van Halen do not understand theory in the academic sense, they definitely have their own ways of explaining what they are playing or writing, and accordingly those explanations become their own versions of 'music theory'. For me it is not necessary to know theory academically like Rick Beato or Nahre Sol to make music, but you definitely must be able to make sense of what you are playing or writing as a musician.
Knowledge is power, My playing drastically improved after studying theory, You know theory . And you know that it makes you a better musician ..... I teach Guitar bass Drums ETC. and would not be able to without knowing theory.......
Your pros and cons I actually mostly agree with; As a musician who plays piano, wants to get into guitar and knows music theory (Since I plan on being a jazz musician and that makes theory necessary) I never EVER restrict myself, my music is very dissonant since I also dabble in Ambience as well as it's one of my most committed hobbies. But like I said, when it comes to theory, people who stick to the rules, never leaving key and never trying new things are definitely restricting themselves and their creativity. That's something I'd never do. But to say that you shouldn't learn music theory is not really necessary, at least to me, because I can learn it, it's extremely helpful as you said, especially for talking to other musicians, and I can tell you I've heard other musicians say "Producers, learn music theory, it's so hard trying to communicate with someone who doesn't know theory" or words of that effect.
Here's how I view music theory: it's like cooking or alchemy. All the ingredients are in front of you... What you do is up to you. You can use only 2 things forever and cook something up or use more and cook. And also as Adam neely once mentioned, the most useful thing of music theory is literally being able to communicate with other musicians better.
thats one of the few things i regret ... skipping theory class haha now i gotta search all that stuff i need all by myself on the interwebs . but in some kind i agree .. you dont really need theory to write good songs , but the thing is if you wanna change the style or try new things its really hard because you gotta start from scratch until you know what works and what not . so i´d say its not that important but its definetly helpfull if you wanna achieve a ceirtan mood or smthg
I've been playing for 12 years. Self taught... I would consider myself an intermediate guitar player. I also hit a lot of walls. Most are from not knowing how to utilize chord variations, and effectively create unique riffs. These shred videos have really helped me really grasp concepts that didnt make any sense before. Still... music theory becomes essential at some point in a musicians career. What sub divisions of music theory are needed to progress, is unique to each player. Shred helps by going into a multitude of these sub divisions! This soul is for sale! \m/
I think Hetfield and Mustaine both knew some theory at least lol. The reharms of famous riffs in different modes is a great way to demonstrate modes to people.
I used to see some backing in the whole "music theory limits creativity" thing, however, I've been more creative in the last two months than I ever have, and I can mainly thank theory for that. I like to take the scales and chords, but how/where to use them is where I start to start to just trust my own creativity to make it sound cool.
When I picked up the guitar I really wanted nothing to do with theory since I had already been in orchestra... I just wanted to break free from all that with the guitar but I'm back to theory again... your channel really motivates me to learn more, but sometimes you're just talking crazy mann 🤘
Fellow shredmaster here! LMAO gnar kill fukkin laugh @ the end, also suuuuupper cut & dry no BS informative lessons.. Damn I wish I had your book... where can I find it? love your methodology \m/
IMO, theory is where I turned when I got tired of being "trapped" in relying on shapes, patterns and imitating other players. Paradoxically, I'm far from an expert, even farther from being a virtuoso but have become a much better player.
I'm with you there on that when I used to read tabs and think if I played like this band or that guy it would make me better but all I did was learn others people's approach and Road map to great sound. When I started to learn the roads myself I was much happier at being able to play my way through the roads of music and become a driver creating my own. It's much better to find your own style this way. Learn the roads at the common level then when you got some understanding you find yourself doing things you never thought you could do.
Brother, you just MADE the argument for learning Music Theory. Knowing MT, and being able to apply it inside and outside of the box, is what makes you a musician vs a guitarist. BTW, Shred, I would LOVE to see a "How Would Bach Play Black Page #2". Zappa might not be everyone's favorite, but I think he was a fucking genius. Limited formal training, yet I think he understood Music Theory inside and out.
Music is art, or at least it should be. I think what makes theory valuable is when it helps the artist. If it feels like a set of barriers, it should be avoided. It's helped me alot.
I'd say its veeeery useful to learn at least some basic music theory. it helps to understand the relation between notes and chords. But one should not completely rely on it in order to create original music. Best pieces come from improvising and feeling the sound imo. Great video !
This is a very good video. Very helpful. I think everyone should have an understanding about theory, but not go overboard with it. Thank you Shredmaster Scott
yetiexplorer James might’ve never taken music theory but cliff burton was a musical genius in theory a modern composer on the bass and he taught Kirk and James a lot
I have been playing the uke(I failed at learning guitar) for 6 years now just learning tab and chord sheets. I began to lost interest last year because the method I was learning/playing music was holding me back and wasn't stimulated by learning anything new. I am competent at the uke when it comes to songs written by others but didn't have the musical vocabulary to be able to express myself with my own song writing. This year I took up piano and started getting serious with music theory and that has all changed now. As an aside, I found music theory drastically easier to learn on the piano. I am also now able to sight read music and not have to memorize everything phrase by phrase. Thanks for putting the music being discussed in musical notation as I can translate what I am learning to my instruments. Guitar tab alone wouldn't help me a bit.
I’ve made prettier and more personal sounding stuff when I ignore rules. I learned black and white keys sound great together you just have to hear. Black chords can make the pretty white chords have a bigger sound. I think understand the rules of 4/4 and that’s it. All that matters is a solid pattern
That's some pretty cool shit dude. Learning music theory just seems so daunting to me. Seems like you have to emerse yourself in it for a while to really learn it.
TH-cam recommending me this just when I'm taking a course on music theory. BTW tonal centers and modes are KILLING ME 😱Well, I guess "No Pain No Gain" applies to music theory too.
Really nice work buddy. You got a new subscriber. I also would like to suggest perhaps some uncommon modes and chordal ideas off them. Like maybe som influenced off the first two Guitar Grimoires. But as I see more of your videos and the end of this one, it seems you cover some of that too! My favorite metal influence is Mithras and their albums. That Cosmic death metal stuff. Im starting a new band influenced off that and Morbid Angel so anything you can help with ideas based off Leon Macey, Trey Azagthoth, and Erik Rutan style, that,would be super sick. My other request is some basic foundation for Thall. Polymeter and polyrhythm stuff. Unless you already covered that too.
Like all things, I think music theory in moderation is extremely useful. I'm not a musician but I am a painter. No, you don't have to learn anatomy. However, will it make you a stronger, more well-rounded artist? Absolutely. Take a few hours to get a basic grasp of anatomy and you will immediately see improvements. Can you be amazing without it? Sure, it's possible, but it's not likely. Just put in the extra work rather than risking your natural talent not being enough. I should mention that I completely agree with your points. Music theory, like anatomy, if strictly followed can make your art boring. You get the functional shit down, and then develop your style with a strong foundation to create a consistently *you* vibe.
Master Shred, I have a question regarding theory and modes. I have a musicians ear, but every time I try to learn something theory/mode related my head wants to explode. Are there people out there who just can't grasp theory??? I honestly want to learn more about what notes fit where and how the modes work, but nothing has ever been able to help. I've even been thrown out of a class for not knowing the modes, and I've also been called dumb and "unable to get it, so just give up.." Any thoughts Master Shred??? I'm all ears
Thanks for the heads-up about tone rows, i was wondering how modern prog metal bands like The Contortionist were coming up with these crazy-sounding chord progressions
Thank you again for this fantastic video, man! You nailed exactly why I am trying to shore up my theory. I want to be able to put to tape what I hear in my head, and theory (and your videos :)) helps me get there. \m/
Learning theory freed me as a musician. Instead of dicking around until I stumbled upon something I liked, I just knew how to achieve it. I can choose not to follow the rules if I want to. On something I'd like to see you do, take a song or a portion of a song, and break down why it works. Like, why does "Iron Man" sound like it does, if I'm making sense.
I've probably learned more from practical application than i have from reading theory, but some theory is invaluable, modulation f.ex. is much easier to learn from theory than from practical application, because it sort of requires you to break the rules in a very controlled way, which for most is only possible if they are aware of what the rules are to begin with, and on the other side i feel like modes are much easier to understand from a practical point of view than the theoretical, i mean, it's quite literally just moving the root in octaves within a scale. It's like a short cut, but personally i've found the technical development i've had from focusing on practical application is equally as invaluable.
HOLY SHIT SHRED!!! i was about to ask you on instagram about it. I'm one of the many guitarrists who learned just with ear, tabs and few sheets, so i was thinking to roll into a music theory lesson here where i live, after this, well, im gonna think a little bit more about it.....thanks a lot dude!! Cheers!!
It's not necessarily one or the other. When I learned music theory I did get more meticulous and constrained, but when I absorbed everything better I became much more creative and knew when and how I could break what I'd learned and have it sound good
I’m no genius musically. But the more I learn about music theory the better I get. If I didn’t learn the d major scale and the Dmin scale I wouldn’t have been able to come up with a lead run that plays out and ends on the major 3rd then plays again but I play the minor 3rd instead making it sound like a new thing. To me it was a break through then I learned some chords and then just randomly started altering 1 note of that chord suddenly I doing a Dmaj chord and hammering on to a sus4. The more I know the more I try things the more I want to learn so I understand why what I’m figuring out is sounding better than I it should.
Music theory is all about understanding the things that you already know. Also it's about learning the things that your ear understands, but you don't (like the quartal harmony example from the video).
I'd like to see a series on the interval system. My teacher didn't start with where I was, he started where he was, so there are gaps. I'm hoping you can help fill those in. Thanks!
When I started playing as a kid, it bored the hell out of me. I ditched learning in favor of my own creativity and finding my own way. Now that I’m older, I find it overlays well onto the style that I did develop and improves composition that was getting stale or in a rut. And I wonder to myself “how did I play this thing for 20 years without knowing this.”
There are two ways of learning music theory. You can learn theory through memorizing songs. If you can play 100 different songs from memory you have a pretty solid foundation in theory already. Learning the modes and scales etc. is a way to learn the theory faster but it cant tell you how to put that knowledge into practice. U;timately any well rounded musicisan need a solid grounding in both methods.
The only negative thing I experienced from learning theory is it took away the "magic" in music and turned it into something easy to make and understand. Of course being able to write songs without touching an instrument is pretty handy, but it pretty much killed that initial fascination I had with music.
7:48 thank you man for reminding me to shred with the subtitle. i have shredded every day for years just like you asked please release my family from your Death Metal Dungeon™ please shred master scott my fingers can not take much more
Mustaine does know theory. Funny he flashed a pic of Randy Rhoades who knew theory exceptionally well, particularly classical music, a genre in which he often took lessons on the road. Randy was even scheduled to leave Ozzy to go back to school to expand his theory.
For me no. I've been playing over 40 years. I consider myself a decent guitarists . I play mostly bluesy rock or metal, but 99 percent is pentatonic stuff with the occasional weird stuff that I like such as inversions and pedal points, etc. As Yngwie said arguing against theory, if it sounds right, it's right. 😂 That said, I would like to know more of the so called rules, or better yet how tp write music score and be able to communicate with a classical trained piano player for instance instead of saying play that again and I figure it out by ear, even though now I can almozt do so right away..👍👍💝👍
I never learned chords on guitar because when I write music I simply play the notes I want to have rather than what is preconceived with chords. I know it’s a dumb way but it helps me create odd chords most don’t learn
Hey Shred, can you make some sick T shirt design of like Bach fighting Arnold Schroeder in some crazy anime-style music battle of counterpoint vs atonal whatever-its-called thing? With like a caption "Shred till' your dead" or something similar. Would buy that shirt in a heartbeat.
Steve Vai once said that you should learn the rules before you break them. When I finally figured out music theory back in the day, I was actually more creative than I ever was before I learn the rules. It was this epiphany that exploded my creativeness and my journey towards progressive music. I highly recommend learning music theory but also learn how to break the rules.
My guitar teacher told me the same thing years ago, I’m still not as learned as I should be but he was right
Originally from Pablo Picasso
Wait Steve Vai said that? That's my line!
The original quote is from Pablo Picasso "You must first learn the rules like a professional, to be able to break them like an artist"
That's how I learned, and how I teach my students. It's called music "theory," not music "law."
Trooper in phrygian = Iced Earth. Trooper in lydian = Dream Theater.
I was thinking Megadeth and Queensryche but that also makes sense. Thrash rooted and Progressive rooted.
Kerry King is the master of music theory
Yessss
MasterBait that’s undisputed
Lol
Is that sarcasm?
and the best guitar player ever
Music theory isn't the theory of how you should make your music. It's the theory of how to tell other people to make your music. It's a language. The more you know about your language, the better you become at expressing how you feel.
A book I read about drawing (Harold Speed - The Practice and Science of Drawing) has a really good analysis of classical education approach vs "feel" when it comes to art. To summarize it from my biased interpretation/memory: The people who benefit from learning theory vastly outnumber the people who don't. Top-tier, best ever artists are almost always theory experts. There are some who don't know classical or theory aspects who succeed and have amazing, one-of-a-kind style but they are very rare. It's probably kind of arrogant to assume that you are one of them. If you are one of those people, you probably aren't questioning whether or not you need to know theory, because you're already doing your thing successfully. If you're questioning yourself at all, you will likely benefit from learning more.
there is also "talent". for example for drawing you need theory, feel, and TALENT. by talent I mean genetic enhancements like eye-hand-3D coordination which not all have at the fine motor skill to draw good. So you can study all the theory you want but if your eye-hand-3D fine motor coordination is not good you will not be Giotto or Michelangelo. Of all the fields in which talent comes to my mind as an additional requirement I would say: Drawing, sports (spatial 3D coordination), and maybe some kind of music (hear-brain coordination). But actually I think Drawing is really where I see a net difference between talent and non-talent. I mean is it really DIFFICULT to imagine 3D figures and painting if your brain is not born with the scheme to do it (and thats genetic). And some sports. Music is not like that, luckily
Mike Anderson well said
My husband is one of those people. I am not.
that was savage, i'm gonna use this from here onward
To me learning theory is like learning from the mistakes and success of artists who cane before us. You get to skip all of the wasted time just meddling until something sounds good.
That is the true meaning of science ;)
but when you dont try and meddle you dont find what sounds good to you.
@@doktorhund6926 you can still meddle but with hundreds of years of ideas to take inspiration from
Mom did not appreciate hearing “F stands for ...” at time 4:48
that's awesome
This mom laughed her ass off.
That part made me smile. The combination of (tounge in cheek) badass metal attitude with deep knowledge makes it one of the most fun music theory demos I've seen :)
Good thing he didn't say what C stands for
That part is actually funny. haha
Taking a music theory college course forced me to compose full pieces of music on my own. Something I had never done before. I wrote songs with friends but never actually completed anything by myself.
After this, I've become a more competent song writer not only because I have the tools to seize a moment of inspiration and build it into a song, but I also have the ability and confidence to write a full song on my own that I used to lack.
But if you can write a good song without it, don't worry about it.
It depends on what someone wants to do with music , if you fancy more complex music , then music theory is a must , if you want to be a professional musician as well , but if you just want to jam and have some fun with yourself and stuff , then it is really pointless to learn something you will never use , some people like having fun with music theory , im not good yet in music theory but what i learned so far cleared a lot confusion and frustration away and made me more motivated to play and have more ideas , as they say "you dont know what you dont know " and that's the great thing about it in my opinion .
Loved how you presented several variations of each song. Happy birthday was great.
I've had this discussion with the drummer from my old band. He was nothing but theory. When it came to writing he'd often times find it difficult to accompany some of the material that I had written. I recall writing a piece of music that didn't fit into a box, but it sounded good. Rhythmically and tonally it made sense. Ultimately music theory is nothing more than stealing ideas from musicians that wrote some music over a century ago. That's when I told him that it's music theory, not music fact. That's the beauty of art. If you get locked into a left brain mindset it can become rudimentary and stale. There's another universe to be discovered. That's your voice.
I wouldn't say theory is stealing ideas from century old musicians, since theory revolves around how sound and frequencies themselves work
Agreed except replace "stealing" with "learning". If you go the other way, everything is stealing - the very act plucking strings to make music would be stealing from whoever 1st discovered it. This extrapolates to all human endeavor. BTW, while were at it, and for the record: man does not, cannot, create - he discovers and manifests that which pre-exists as a possibility within the fabric of creation.
Ok. Not stealing. Expanding on ideas.
I fully agree. Stay Metal.
Learned some basic music theory allowed me to now play all over the neck, switching scales, playing arpeggios, building chord progression....still learning.
I admit I am not very good by ears and I was stuck playing the same thing over and over when I was taking my bass. Now I can improvise for hours without getting bored. It made all the difference for me.
I'm sure it helped, but if one plays enough , it comes naturally
I am a self-taught beginner Bassist, Vocalist and all round artist. I fully agree as I have no other musicians to jam with due to over theorization. Just play it stop talking about playing. Stay Metal.
I learn enough theory, but I never let it be a trap
It works for me
Not the other way around
Goat Surgeon I feel the same way
that's how I see it. I find it important to learn a lot of music theory, and be as adept at theory as possible, but don't ever let it define how you make music. Just like the rules of theory, theory itself should only serve as a guide, at least to me.
I love how you show the tab for the Trooper. Using a different inversion of the G power chord. And I also love that song using Phrygian!
I am a 39th level Satanic Free Mason at not learning music theory.
Dave Mustaine knows jack about theory? That's hard to believe!
IKR? I mean I guess he knows as least Phyrgian??!
yeah there’s no way he doesn’t know
I'm sure he's developed his own way to think about things but I'd be surprised if he knew what a mixolydian scale is by name.
THRASH METAL & FUN RIFFS No he doesn’t. Because when he plays a diminished scale in his solo he is off key. I cringe whenever I hear it. But then again, it has become a Signature riff of his and I embrace that with him
He does know theory. Didn't you see him play with the San Diego symphony lol
I have classical and jazz music theory training (through school/private instruction/my own study).
I teach all my guitar students some theory. I want them to have some understanding of stuff instead of them just memorizing shapes/patterns. If they want to more... we can dive into it, but I'm never gonna push it on someone.
I started learning it at a very young age so I can't say what I would be like without it. My music is very neoclassic, symphonic and progressive (think Symphony X meets Epica/Nightwish), so I really need to know what the hell I am doing to make the orchestration work.
agreed brother
yeah. you definitely need a balance. The best musicians can balance music theory and their inner soul to make music.
My teacher is the same way.
I'm actually starting to learn more theory and while before I was basically going things at random and hoping they worked. After learning music theory and understanding the fretboard a bit more, it really showed in my playing.
Shred -Those cords right at the beginning were f'n rad! What were they? I'd like to analyze them. One should know enough theory to make them dangerous. You have a great channel, dude.
I play sax and I've studied tons of theory and jazz Harmony. It shows you how the chords relate to the scales and how it all works within the harmony of a tune. Then you can do all your extracurricular sorta things, crazy scales etc.as long as you resolve it in a cool way.. I think what hinders guitarists is not knowing the fretboard thoroughly. I know the diatonic modes and harmonic minor modes on guitar and can shred pretty good, sweep picking etc but I'm stuck because I don't know the neck as well as I should. Maybe do a video on tips of learning the guitar neck. I've seen a few on this topic but nobody has a method that is very usable to me. Anyways, thanks for the videos.
Theory is important for me. Because it lays a foundation for what I want to do structurally. But I don’t think about theory when I write. It’s all subconscious and part of my circuitry. But these lessons from Scott I find so refreshing and so much more of the Bach stuff I want to learn. Scott has broken paradigms for me. Haven’t found something this important musically in 10 years. Scott is the Shed Master 🤘 thank you
Thank you brother, I’m honored to hear that 🙏
Well, try writing down your ideas without music theory!
Back when i was still playing the guitar, i used to even wake up to good ideas for music which the only thing i could do was take my guitar and a tape recorder to keep it for later. Guess what, there were times i could not play it because i didn't know how to recreate the sound on guitar.
If you can be a really good player without music theory, it's great.
If you are a really good player with music theory, you may also support yourself financially by doing a a lot of different things involving music.
It also depends on the music you play and your goals in life though.
stevierv22 being educated definitely gives you a better shot at making money 💰
@@ShredmasterScott Charlie Parker seems to have said “Master your instrument, Master the music, and then forget all that bullshit and just play.”
Theory is a great tool in mastering music and your instrument. You just have to remember not to be a slave of formality.
It's an advantage over others in every aspect.
Sometimes though, simple melodies and harmony can also be amazing, this should not be forgotten.
Learn the rules. Break the rules.
AyJay Walk that’s the idea
Music theory helps with recreating a song more commonly known as transposition.
that's a good point
Tengo muy poca comprensión sobre música pues nunca me puse a estudiar en razón, sólo tocar por tocar sin saber que demonios hacia y me frustra un poco no saber teoría musical pues siento que tengo Buenas ideas pero no puedo externalas de la manera en las que las pienso y siento. Creo que debe ser un equilibrio entre sensibilidad y conocimiento para poder hacer algo único y es necesario saber los fundamentos teóricos de cualquier arte o ciencia para lograrlo.
Sorry about writting it in spanish but I had to spit it as I felt it. In resumen: It is necessary to know theory to develop our thoughts in the proper way, we need a balance between feeling and technique to achieve what we want in music.
Thanks for all these lessons, I don't know where I'd be without them. Probably stuck on Songster lol \m/
you're better off here
Shred Just found your channel through the Spirit Crusher video and I already love the channel
The thing about music theory is that, it is just a way of making sense of how music works. Even though the likes of Lennon-McCartney and Eddie Van Halen do not understand theory in the academic sense, they definitely have their own ways of explaining what they are playing or writing, and accordingly those explanations become their own versions of 'music theory'.
For me it is not necessary to know theory academically like Rick Beato or Nahre Sol to make music, but you definitely must be able to make sense of what you are playing or writing as a musician.
I miss Shredmaster Scott.☹️
Ali Jr. you’re gonna like “Shred” even better
@@ShredmasterScott yhes
prank bullshit Halloween
Knowledge is power, My playing drastically improved after studying theory, You know theory . And you know that it makes you a better musician .....
I teach Guitar bass Drums ETC. and would not be able to without knowing theory.......
Your pros and cons I actually mostly agree with; As a musician who plays piano, wants to get into guitar and knows music theory (Since I plan on being a jazz musician and that makes theory necessary) I never EVER restrict myself, my music is very dissonant since I also dabble in Ambience as well as it's one of my most committed hobbies.
But like I said, when it comes to theory, people who stick to the rules, never leaving key and never trying new things are definitely restricting themselves and their creativity. That's something I'd never do. But to say that you shouldn't learn music theory is not really necessary, at least to me, because I can learn it, it's extremely helpful as you said, especially for talking to other musicians, and I can tell you I've heard other musicians say "Producers, learn music theory, it's so hard trying to communicate with someone who doesn't know theory" or words of that effect.
Here's how I view music theory: it's like cooking or alchemy. All the ingredients are in front of you... What you do is up to you. You can use only 2 things forever and cook something up or use more and cook.
And also as Adam neely once mentioned, the most useful thing of music theory is literally being able to communicate with other musicians better.
Sree Vardhan that’s right, learn the language to communicate with others
thats one of the few things i regret ... skipping theory class haha now i gotta search all that stuff i need all by myself on the interwebs . but in some kind i agree .. you dont really need theory to write good songs , but the thing is if you wanna change the style or try new things its really hard because you gotta start from scratch until you know what works and what not . so i´d say its not that important but its definetly helpfull if you wanna achieve a ceirtan mood or smthg
I've been playing for 12 years. Self taught... I would consider myself an intermediate guitar player. I also hit a lot of walls. Most are from not knowing how to utilize chord variations, and effectively create unique riffs. These shred videos have really helped me really grasp concepts that didnt make any sense before. Still... music theory becomes essential at some point in a musicians career. What sub divisions of music theory are needed to progress, is unique to each player. Shred helps by going into a multitude of these sub divisions! This soul is for sale! \m/
True words. Talking is not playing. Over theorization is a killer of everything. Stay Metal.
I think Hetfield and Mustaine both knew some theory at least lol. The reharms of famous riffs in different modes is a great way to demonstrate modes to people.
I used to see some backing in the whole "music theory limits creativity" thing, however, I've been more creative in the last two months than I ever have, and I can mainly thank theory for that. I like to take the scales and chords, but how/where to use them is where I start to start to just trust my own creativity to make it sound cool.
When I picked up the guitar I really wanted nothing to do with theory since I had already been in orchestra... I just wanted to break free from all that with the guitar but I'm back to theory again... your channel really motivates me to learn more, but sometimes you're just talking crazy mann 🤘
I have used the backwards trick with many of my less stellar ideas and found some cool progressions. You know your shit dude!
"You'll die alone and no one will ever love you" 🤣🤣🤣🤣 that's so true, loved this video
Fellow shredmaster here! LMAO gnar kill fukkin laugh @ the end, also suuuuupper cut & dry no BS informative lessons.. Damn I wish I had your book... where can I find it? love your methodology \m/
Shredmaster comicsans I need to write my own book. The one in the video is called the practice of harmony by Peter Spencer
Music theory is so fascinating.☺
and this video made me want to learn more music theory. Thanks 😁🤘🏻
I like it
IMO, theory is where I turned when I got tired of being "trapped" in relying on shapes, patterns and imitating other players. Paradoxically, I'm far from an expert, even farther from being a virtuoso but have become a much better player.
I'm with you there on that when I used to read tabs and think if I played like this band or that guy it would make me better but all I did was learn others people's approach and Road map to great sound. When I started to learn the roads myself I was much happier at being able to play my way through the roads of music and become a driver creating my own. It's much better to find your own style this way. Learn the roads at the common level then when you got some understanding you find yourself doing things you never thought you could do.
Brother, you just MADE the argument for learning Music Theory. Knowing MT, and being able to apply it inside and outside of the box, is what makes you a musician vs a guitarist.
BTW, Shred, I would LOVE to see a "How Would Bach Play Black Page #2". Zappa might not be everyone's favorite, but I think he was a fucking genius. Limited formal training, yet I think he understood Music Theory inside and out.
im glad your channel is growing Shred. You are a good lad and you really deserve it man.
Music is art, or at least it should be. I think what makes theory valuable is when it helps the artist. If it feels like a set of barriers, it should be avoided. It's helped me alot.
Is there another piano playing at 6:21 that's not represented on the staff?
Definitely worth it. One of the best posts I've seen. Intriguing.
I'd say its veeeery useful to learn at least some basic music theory. it helps to understand the relation between notes and chords. But one should not completely rely on it in order to create original music. Best pieces come from improvising and feeling the sound imo. Great video !
Hey man I like the sound of pandiatonicism, I will muck about with that today. Maybe a vid on that?
what you're playing at 11:22 sounds like a weather report song from the heavy weather album... i forget the title
This is a very good video. Very helpful. I think everyone should have an understanding about theory, but not go overboard with it. Thank you Shredmaster Scott
Hetfield was taking piano lessons when he was kid so I guess he has some music theory knowledge...
Only a little
yetiexplorer James might’ve never taken music theory but cliff burton was a musical genius in theory a modern composer on the bass and he taught Kirk and James a lot
Only a little 2 years is a huge time in your early development stages
I have been playing the uke(I failed at learning guitar) for 6 years now just learning tab and chord sheets. I began to lost interest last year because the method I was learning/playing music was holding me back and wasn't stimulated by learning anything new. I am competent at the uke when it comes to songs written by others but didn't have the musical vocabulary to be able to express myself with my own song writing. This year I took up piano and started getting serious with music theory and that has all changed now. As an aside, I found music theory drastically easier to learn on the piano. I am also now able to sight read music and not have to memorize everything phrase by phrase.
Thanks for putting the music being discussed in musical notation as I can translate what I am learning to my instruments. Guitar tab alone wouldn't help me a bit.
I’ve made prettier and more personal sounding stuff when I ignore rules. I learned black and white keys sound great together you just have to hear. Black chords can make the pretty white chords have a bigger sound. I think understand the rules of 4/4 and that’s it. All that matters is a solid pattern
That's some pretty cool shit dude. Learning music theory just seems so daunting to me. Seems like you have to emerse yourself in it for a while to really learn it.
TH-cam recommending me this just when I'm taking a course on music theory. BTW tonal centers and modes are KILLING ME 😱Well, I guess "No Pain No Gain" applies to music theory too.
Really nice work buddy. You got a new subscriber. I also would like to suggest perhaps some uncommon modes and chordal ideas off them. Like maybe som influenced off the first two Guitar Grimoires. But as I see more of your videos and the end of this one, it seems you cover some of that too!
My favorite metal influence is Mithras and their albums. That Cosmic death metal stuff. Im starting a new band influenced off that and Morbid Angel so anything you can help with ideas based off Leon Macey, Trey Azagthoth, and Erik Rutan style, that,would be super sick.
My other request is some basic foundation for Thall. Polymeter and polyrhythm stuff. Unless you already covered that too.
This is such a sick video!! Subscribed!
Like all things, I think music theory in moderation is extremely useful.
I'm not a musician but I am a painter. No, you don't have to learn anatomy. However, will it make you a stronger, more well-rounded artist? Absolutely. Take a few hours to get a basic grasp of anatomy and you will immediately see improvements. Can you be amazing without it? Sure, it's possible, but it's not likely. Just put in the extra work rather than risking your natural talent not being enough.
I should mention that I completely agree with your points. Music theory, like anatomy, if strictly followed can make your art boring. You get the functional shit down, and then develop your style with a strong foundation to create a consistently *you* vibe.
Master Shred, I have a question regarding theory and modes. I have a musicians ear, but every time I try to learn something theory/mode related my head wants to explode. Are there people out there who just can't grasp theory??? I honestly want to learn more about what notes fit where and how the modes work, but nothing has ever been able to help. I've even been thrown out of a class for not knowing the modes, and I've also been called dumb and "unable to get it, so just give up.." Any thoughts Master Shred??? I'm all ears
Trooper in phrygian was awesome! Instant thrash metal.
btw you are f good man. ja that good. next time they do a shred collab you should participate (with Dines et al)
Thanks for the heads-up about tone rows, i was wondering how modern prog metal bands like The Contortionist were coming up with these crazy-sounding chord progressions
Thank you again for this fantastic video, man! You nailed exactly why I am trying to shore up my theory. I want to be able to put to tape what I hear in my head, and theory (and your videos :)) helps me get there. \m/
Hey man, applying retrograde & inversion to Andy's work in King Diamond is particularly enjoyable for me, in case you feel like checking it out.
Learning theory freed me as a musician. Instead of dicking around until I stumbled upon something I liked, I just knew how to achieve it. I can choose not to follow the rules if I want to.
On something I'd like to see you do, take a song or a portion of a song, and break down why it works. Like, why does "Iron Man" sound like it does, if I'm making sense.
10:45 isn’t that one of the parts from a change of seasons?
Great video!! What's the music theory book you were referring to throughout the video? I'd love to check it out
I've probably learned more from practical application than i have from reading theory, but some theory is invaluable, modulation f.ex. is much easier to learn from theory than from practical application, because it sort of requires you to break the rules in a very controlled way, which for most is only possible if they are aware of what the rules are to begin with, and on the other side i feel like modes are much easier to understand from a practical point of view than the theoretical, i mean, it's quite literally just moving the root in octaves within a scale.
It's like a short cut, but personally i've found the technical development i've had from focusing on practical application is equally as invaluable.
HOLY SHIT SHRED!!! i was about to ask you on instagram about it. I'm one of the many guitarrists who learned just with ear, tabs and few sheets, so i was thinking to roll into a music theory lesson here where i live, after this, well, im gonna think a little bit more about it.....thanks a lot dude!! Cheers!!
It's not necessarily one or the other. When I learned music theory I did get more meticulous and constrained, but when I absorbed everything better I became much more creative and knew when and how I could break what I'd learned and have it sound good
Great vid, Shred. YES you should learn music theory. If u dont like it dont use it. U gotta know the rules to break em.
I’m no genius musically. But the more I learn about music theory the better I get. If I didn’t learn the d major scale and the Dmin scale I wouldn’t have been able to come up with a lead run that plays out and ends on the major 3rd then plays again but I play the minor 3rd instead making it sound like a new thing. To me it was a break through then I learned some chords and then just randomly started altering 1 note of that chord suddenly I doing a Dmaj chord and hammering on to a sus4. The more I know the more I try things the more I want to learn so I understand why what I’m figuring out is sounding better than I it should.
I totally agree about the cons, and I can confirm, it's actually what I'm suffering from right now, thanks for the video.
Neo-Baroque/Classical Taki it’s only temporary
Music theory is all about understanding the things that you already know. Also it's about learning the things that your ear understands, but you don't (like the quartal harmony example from the video).
Music theory? Now, i don't even need Instruments to create Music.😂.
Great Video Mr Shred!
I'd like to see a series on the interval system. My teacher didn't start with where I was, he started where he was, so there are gaps. I'm hoping you can help fill those in. Thanks!
darkman237 I do basic theory quizzes on Instagram
Hey Shred what guitar software are you using in this video? thanks
I’m just trying to play post punk, do I really need to get fancy?
I have some backwards riffs, or something very close to it. It's a great trick when nothing else will work.
How about a video on how to write a Metal Ballad?
When I started playing as a kid, it bored the hell out of me. I ditched learning in favor of my own creativity and finding my own way. Now that I’m older, I find it overlays well onto the style that I did develop and improves composition that was getting stale or in a rut. And I wonder to myself “how did I play this thing for 20 years without knowing this.”
what tuning do you usually use on your guitar?
Can you tell me the name of the book you show for theory?
There are two ways of learning music theory. You can learn theory through memorizing songs. If you can play 100 different songs from memory you have a pretty solid foundation in theory already. Learning the modes and scales etc. is a way to learn the theory faster but it cant tell you how to put that knowledge into practice. U;timately any well rounded musicisan need a solid grounding in both methods.
What music theory book do you have man?
DJ Nicolas Rodas the practice of harmony by Peter Spencer. It’s more for intermediate to advanced levels
The only negative thing I experienced from learning theory is it took away the "magic" in music and turned it into something easy to make and understand. Of course being able to write songs without touching an instrument is pretty handy, but it pretty much killed that initial fascination I had with music.
AGREED! Trying to learn theory slowed me down. I play by ear. I actually hate theory. It also ruins my creativity.
Hello Mr. Shred? Have you ever checked out Jeff loomis from nevermore?
Theory doesn't tell you "what" to play, it tells you "why" something works
Shred dude_
Love the content!
Do something on the Blues
maybe an evil blues lesson....👺
I like the tone row America the beautiful song, sounds like all things Savatage.
Loved those chromatic lines and the humor. Reminded me of a band called Adagio.
7:48 thank you man for reminding me to shred with the subtitle. i have shredded every day for years just like you asked please release my family from your Death Metal Dungeon™ please shred master scott my fingers can not take much more
Mustaine does know theory. Funny he flashed a pic of Randy Rhoades who knew theory exceptionally well, particularly classical music, a genre in which he often took lessons on the road. Randy was even scheduled to leave Ozzy to go back to school to expand his theory.
I would like to ask about the title of the book.
Theory definitely enhances my expression. The more theory I learn the more I explore. Thanks.
I always find myself making or trying to make riffs in the Locrian mode because it was regarded as "evil" lol
Is it worth it to learn how to read if you already know how to talk?
For me no. I've been playing over 40 years. I consider myself a decent guitarists . I play mostly bluesy rock or metal, but 99 percent is pentatonic stuff with the occasional weird stuff that I like such as inversions and pedal points, etc. As Yngwie said arguing against theory, if it sounds right, it's right. 😂
That said, I would like to know more of the so called rules, or better yet how tp write music score and be able to communicate with a classical trained piano player for instance instead of saying play that again and I figure it out by ear, even though now I can almozt do so right away..👍👍💝👍
I never learned chords on guitar because when I write music I simply play the notes I want to have rather than what is preconceived with chords. I know it’s a dumb way but it helps me create odd chords most don’t learn
Same. I later discovered I was just playing 3rds with an open string, if that makes sence.
Hey Shred, can you make some sick T shirt design of like Bach fighting Arnold Schroeder in some crazy anime-style music battle of counterpoint vs atonal whatever-its-called thing? With like a caption "Shred till' your dead" or something similar. Would buy that shirt in a heartbeat.
or Igor Stravinsky idk.
Love that idea but I’m no graphic designer