Introduction of Music

Introduction

This is the Music Theory I course, covering an introduction to music theory, pitches, pitch collections (scales), key signatures, rhythmic meters, and modes. You should already know music fundamentals such as clefs, staves, accidentals, dynamics, and rhythmic values.

For more fundamental musical theory, see Introduction to Music or Fundamentals of Music.

What is music?

The definition of music itself is elusive. We want to be general enough to include a wide range of styles and cultures and approaches, yet not so wide that the term "music" can mean anything, and therefore, nothing. Here are some attempts:

• Music is a series of tones
• Music is sound organized by humans
• Music is an art-and-science
• Music is an abstract communication language
• Music is an emotional expression of the soul
• Music is made up of the elements of melody, harmony, rhythm, timbre, texture, dynamics, and form
• Music is the created order of nature
• Music is culturally-defined psychological expression in sound
• Music is love

All of these definitions have merit and truth. For now, let us define music as an art form expressed through the medium of sound, organized aurally (what we hear) and rhythmically (when we hear it).