My name is Sara Hood and I am a second time adult student of the Baritone horn. I played in high school, but not for about 20 years after that. About a year ago, I decided to pick it up again, purchased myself a horn, and joined the local Salvation Army Band in Sacramento, CA. I find myself wondering, just how much do I know? How do I rate as a musician? Now as far as tone and music production, I can basically hear the answer to that myself. I think that I will take the money I got for Christmas and get myself some lessons.
But what I am asking myself and having trouble with is music theory (the fundamentals of reading/understanding the technical side of music). I do remember the note names and fingerings (lines and spaces), the note shapes and duration (quarter note = 1 beat, eighth note = half beat, how time signature affects this, etc.) and some of the symbology (treble or base clef, dynamics, tempo, style, etc.). I also have all kinds of other info running around in my head. Key signatures, concert pitches, intervals, some terminology. For example, I know that on a baritone, my C is in fact a concert B-flat. But what that means, or what to do with that knowledge, I don't quite know. I know what a chord is, but not which notes go in which chords, or what a diminished chord is. I know what sharps and flats are, but I don't know which ones belong to which scales/keys. I can basically play in key signatures with up to 4 flats or two sharps. I know there are 15 major keys, so I only have about half of them. I have no clue about what a minor key is though.
I am wondering if there is some kind of test I can take that will help me to assess where I am musically, determine what I know, and identify where I have gaps in my knowledge. I would like to go from there and try to fill in those gaps, and maybe add to my knowledge. It depends. On a scale of zero (know nothing) to 10 (professional virtuoso like some of the members of this group). If I am a 6 or 7, (know enough to get by in most musical circumstances), then I may not worry about pushing the envelope any further. I am a hobby musician at best, but do want to make playing and sharing music with others a part of my life. On the other hand, if I am a 4 (more than a beginner, but really should learn more so as to be ready for most musical circumstances), then I would like to come up to being a 6 or 7.
So, you folks have any suggestions as far as musical theory assessment tests go, and then self-paced music theory instruction to build from there?
Thanks in advance (smile).
- Sara Hood
But what I am asking myself and having trouble with is music theory (the fundamentals of reading/understanding the technical side of music). I do remember the note names and fingerings (lines and spaces), the note shapes and duration (quarter note = 1 beat, eighth note = half beat, how time signature affects this, etc.) and some of the symbology (treble or base clef, dynamics, tempo, style, etc.). I also have all kinds of other info running around in my head. Key signatures, concert pitches, intervals, some terminology. For example, I know that on a baritone, my C is in fact a concert B-flat. But what that means, or what to do with that knowledge, I don't quite know. I know what a chord is, but not which notes go in which chords, or what a diminished chord is. I know what sharps and flats are, but I don't know which ones belong to which scales/keys. I can basically play in key signatures with up to 4 flats or two sharps. I know there are 15 major keys, so I only have about half of them. I have no clue about what a minor key is though.
I am wondering if there is some kind of test I can take that will help me to assess where I am musically, determine what I know, and identify where I have gaps in my knowledge. I would like to go from there and try to fill in those gaps, and maybe add to my knowledge. It depends. On a scale of zero (know nothing) to 10 (professional virtuoso like some of the members of this group). If I am a 6 or 7, (know enough to get by in most musical circumstances), then I may not worry about pushing the envelope any further. I am a hobby musician at best, but do want to make playing and sharing music with others a part of my life. On the other hand, if I am a 4 (more than a beginner, but really should learn more so as to be ready for most musical circumstances), then I would like to come up to being a 6 or 7.
So, you folks have any suggestions as far as musical theory assessment tests go, and then self-paced music theory instruction to build from there?
Thanks in advance (smile).
- Sara Hood
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