Music Theory (1 Viewer)

Estel

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Has anyone here doing Music 2 done external music theory to grade 7 or 8? If so, how useful was it for you in terms of composition?

Thanks.
 

Phanatical

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AMEB theory/musicianship above grade 5 is useless.

If you need help with music composition, find a composer who can help you.
 

Estel

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What about ABRSM...
I don't really have the money to spare on getting a mentor/tutor on this...
 

ujuphleg

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I did up to 5.

Look, the way I see it there are 2 ways of approaching composition (this is in my amateur opinion)

1) You think about what you are going to write, the cadential points, the styles you are looking for, the modes you are changing, the interesting modulations etc. etc. you are going to do and you write a well thought out piece which is technically advanced and theoretically based.

OR

2) You write the thing then analyse it later.

I went with the former option, because for me, music, in its essence, its about the sound. Therefore, if it sounds good, there should be no reason why it isn't good. Furthermore, what is "good" is highly subjective.

I wouldn't worry too much Estel. Write first, worry later. Look for things to justify anything you need into your work afterwards. If you can't find enough of whatever you are looking for, add it! :) Its your composition, your baby. Enjoy!
 

Phanatical

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I still recommend a composition teacher. An hour ($40 maybe) a month would be all you need.
 

nemuca

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Well, I've done ABRSM theory up to grade 8
I find it rather useful when it comes to aural and musicology stuff in Music 2
Coz when I did grade 8 I had to read a lot of books about different periods and the key composers, and I did heaps of score analysis - which teaches you heaps about harmony

And for composition, after doing grade 8, you would know stuff like using tone rows, Messiaen's limited modes of transposition, and how to write anything atonal... It also teaches you how to structure a composition

I used to teach grade 8 theory before I came to Australia, I don't do it anymore coz no one here seems to be interested in doing grade 8 for theory
I'm still a high school student, so I charge a relatively lower price... If anyone's interested, you could perhaps PM me. ;)
 
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Phanatical

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I still stand by my assertion that anything above AMEB grade 5 is useless. For the HSC, you don't want to burden yourself with superfluous studies - those are things you'd study in Comp Tech at uni. For the HSC, the emphasis remains on originality, and the ability to justify your work.

Nemuca, you're almost 19, and you're still a high school student?
 

Estel

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I don't do HSC music so it's probably all 'superfluous.' It's all out of interest. I will consider lessons perhaps, but I don't see what you can do in one hr a month. I would view theory as beneficial if it improved my compositions/made it easier to compose.
Does this change anything in regards to the value of doing high grades of theory?
 

Phanatical

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For composition at uni, I have a 40 minute session with my teacher every week (or couple weeks). The idea is that you need to consider yourself what you're going to do, and the teacher makes sure you're not doing something stupid.
 

nemuca

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Phanatical said:
Nemuca, you're almost 19, and you're still a high school student?
Yeh, coz I juz came from Hong Kong last year, where there is a different schooling system, they have 7 years of high school. My birthday's in January, which means I could've started school earlier, but in Hong Kong, the school year starts in September... Hate it.

Anyway, I think it's not that bad afterall, coz I have more time to learn different stuff and I do better than most of the people in my year in subjects like Maths & Music.
 

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