Head towards the internet and do a search for Arnold Shoenberg. Listen to some of his music and other composers who use the twelve tone composition technique and you will instantly have opinions. If you’re like many, your opinion will be extreme like or extreme hate.

12 tone composition, also loosely referred to as serialism was invented by Arnold Shoenberg in 1921. In traditional music some tones become more heavily used than others. Remember our discussion of key signature? If a piece of music is in the key of C Major, the note, “C” will be used in that piece much more than any other note with “G” probably being the 2nd most used. Notes like “D” and “A” will feel left out unless the music changes keys to D Major. Notes like F# may never be heard while the music is in the key of C Major.

Shoenberg knew that this unequal emphasis of certain notes is what gives traditional music its “traditional” sound. He wanted to invent a type of music that sounded entirely different than traditional music so he came up with the Twelve Tone Row. The basic principle is simple: You can’t repeat a note until you use the other 11 chromatic notes. Sounds simple, doesn’t it? First you use C, then C#, then D, etc. until you’ve used all of them. Then start again! This simple technique is actually very complicated.

First, we have to construct a row. To make our row, we have to use all 12 chromatic notes only once but we can use them in any order we would like. How many rows do you have to choose from? 9,985,920! That’s a lot of rows but it’s even more complicated than that!

If you were only allowed to play your chosen 12 tone row, that would be boring! There are a series of what Shoenberg calls transformations that we’re allowed to use. We can play our tone row backwards, (called retrograde) we can transpose it up or down as many steps as we would like, or we can “invert” the notes within our row (If a note went up a minor 3rd, we could move it down a minor 3rd instead), if we want to keep our 12 tone composition simple. We can then harmonize our original tone row of choice by using one of our simple transformations.

In actually, these transformations get extremely complicated. There are 48 different transformations when you combine transposition, inversion, and retrograde. (We’re leaving some of the more confusing parts of this technique out of this article so if you do the math, it won’t work out)

By combining different rows using their transformations, you will get harmony. The rhythms you choose are entirely up to you so the way your rows interact with each other is one of the many ways your music becomes unique.

Before you get too excited about learning this complex technique, don’t expect your 12 tone music to be pleasing to the ear in a traditional sense. It will never sound anything like the music you hear on the radio nor will your non-music friends have a lot of positive comments. You’ll hear something like “DUH! Even I could write that!”

12 tone rows is yet another tool in the composer’s toolbox. Play around with it and have fun!

It is very easy to locate the key of a song when there are sharps in the key signature (major keys — we’ll discuss relative minor keys later) simply by locating the last sharp to the right in the key signature in a piece of music and going up one-half step. Watch this short video and your instantly understand:

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Learn music. Music can be so complex and multi-faceted that it’s no wonder that the average person is lost when it comes to a basic understanding of what music is. After all, there are many different classes of classical music alone - from baroque to romantic, from Bach to Bernstein, and everthing in between. Then in jazz there is ragtime, blues, bop, west coast, Kansas City, dixieland — so many different styles all under the broad heading of “jazz”. And who can count the different styles in the world of “popular” music — from rock to country to folk to new age to….on and on.

But no matter what style or genre, all of music can be boiled down to just 3 basic elements: melody (the tune), rhythm, and harmony. If I play melody alone without any rhythm, you probably would not recognize it as a tune — you would think of it as just a meaningless succession of notes. But when I marry it to rhythm, then it becomes recognizeable. And when I add the third element of harmony, then we have “music” as we know and love it.

Watch this “birdseye view of music” video in 5 minutes and 55 seconds:

Music can be so complex and multi-faceted that it’s no wonder that the average person is lost when it comes to a basic understanding of what music is. After all, there are many different classes of classical music alone - from baroque to romantic, from Bach to Bernstein, and everthing in between. Then in jazz there is ragtime, blues, bop, west coast, Kansas City, dixieland — so many different styles all under the broad heading of “jazz”. And who can count the different styles in the world of “popular” music — from rock to country to folk to new age to….on and on.

But no matter what style or genre, all of music can be boiled down to just 3 basic elements: melody (the tune), rhythm, and harmony. If I play melody alone without any rhythm, you probably would not recognize it as a tune — you would think of it as just a meaningless succession of notes. But when I marry it to rhythm, then it becomes recognizeable. And when I add the third element of harmony, then we have “music” as we know and love it.

Watch this 5-minute video on how to learn music from a birdseye view:

The opportunities for music correspondence courses are vastly different today compared to a few years ago. Thanks to modern technology and the Internet, taking a music course by correspondence is now much more practical.

Imagine how hard it would be to learn how to play the piano or another instrument by simply reading a book. It’s true that people have successfully learned to play an instrument by reading a book. However, without the benefit of visual demonstrations, the process can be long and difficult. Today’s music correspondence courses contain visual demonstrations via video and live webcam instruction to accompany written textbook materials. This combination of learning materials greatly increases the student’s likelihood of success.

The type of correspondence course that you choose will probably depend on your goals. Examine your reasons for wanting to learn to play a particular instrument to determine where to start looking.

Do you want to:

* Receive nationally recognized certification? If so, you may want to look into colleges or accredited music schools. This is especially true if you hope to get a job in the music industry. Many employers want to see some type of formal education on your résumé from a reputable school. Many of these offer correspondence courses that can help you meet your goals. Sometimes you can complete an entire certificate program by correspondence. For other programs, you may need to do some live classroom work in addition to correspondence courses. Look for accredited music schools with a professional reputation in the industry. Most offer some type of distance education, either by correspondence or online. This can be an excellent alternative if moving somewhere else to get your musical education isn’t an option.

* Enrich your personal life? Maybe you always wanted to learn to play the piano as a child but never had the opportunity. Maybe you’ve been out of practice for several years and just want to brush up on your skills. If employment in the music industry isn’t necessarily your goal, then you’ll probably find what you need from a private instructor or company. Many online music schools offer programs for beginners or for honing old skills. They may combine written materials with DVD demonstrations, online video instruction or live instruction via webcam. Sometimes these types of correspondence courses are less expensive than those offered by colleges or music schools.

* Explore a new genre? Maybe you are a classically trained pianist who always wanted to learn how to play the blues. Perhaps you took lessons for a few years as a child, but never took theory and learned to understand chords. A correspondence course through a private instructor or company may be exactly what you need. Correspondence courses are available on specific topics and genres that may interest you. If you already know the basics, it won’t take long to build upon that knowledge and teach yourself something new.

Let your personal reasons guide your decision when choosing a music correspondence course. You’ll probably find that many music correspondence courses are very affordable. Plus, you can learn from the comfort of home with your own instrument. The list of advantages to taking a music correspondence course is practically endless.

If you’re a guitar player who desires to learn the piano, you’re already ahead of the game. You can transfer your knowledge of chords and chord patterns to the keyboard.

This means you could be playing a tune at the piano in no time. That’s because chords are chords, no matter what instrument they are played on.

The composition of chords is the same whether you apply them to a guitar or a piano. The only difference is where the application takes place. On a piano, you use black and

white keys on the keyboard to form different chords. It’s akin to pressing strings to form chords on the fret board of a guitar. You press certain strings at certain fret

positions to get a certain chord sound.

Guitarists can learn the piano rapidly because they already understand chord patterns. Some guitarists know chord patterns as written musical notation; others know these

patterns by sound. Some know both methods. A guitarist who can read chord patterns, written using proper music notation, will be able to read a chord pattern on sheet music

whether its for guitar or piano. All the guitarist has to do is learn the keys of the piano and then play the written music at the keys.

Someone who does not know how to read music must first learn the written form. Then he or she must learn the keyboard keys before putting the two together to play. A

guitarist saves time by already knowing the written element.

What about guitarists who cannot read music, but play by ear? It is still easier for them to learn the piano because they have an ear for chord sounds. Those new to music

must tune their ear to the sound of chords. They cannot usually just sit at a piano and say, “I’m going to play a C Major Triad.” They must first understand what comprises

this triad. When they play it, they must know whether the sound is right.

Guitarists who understand chord construction and know a chord’s sound when they hear it are further ahead. When they locate the appropriate keys at the piano and play the

chord, they know by the sound whether they’ve played it correctly. This is because they’ve heard the chord many times before on the guitar. The chord will sound the same

only with the piano’s characteristic sound underpinning it.

Guitarists will also learn to experiment and improvise on a piano faster than one who has never played another instrument before. Guitarists constantly manipulate chords,

always trying new voicings and chord combinations. When they undertake piano study, they will do the same. Since they already know the theory and architecture of chords,

and the scale notes they are born of, they can begin manipulating them at the keyboard immediately. There is no need to learn the reasons behind what they are doing.

The guitar and the piano have much in common when it comes to playing chords. If you know guitar chords, you will not find the piano an intimidating instrument. You will

find it’s another vehicle for your musical creativity: one you already know something about.

Learning music as an absolute beginner can be frustrating if you do not know where to start. There is no right or wrong way for a beginner to learn, but there are simple steps that can help anyone make learning music fun.

First of all, you’ll need an instrument of course. If you have access to a piano, you have got a head start. The piano is the easiest instrument to begin learning, yet is also the most versatile. Its notes are set neatly in a row with nothing hidden. Because of this simple layout, the piano can be used to learn the basic principles of music which will then carry over into other instruments.

The piano has two sets of keys: the white keys and the black keys. Each key plays a different note. Starting on the note C and playing the next six white keys to the right will form the C major scale. Of course, finding the note for a beginner is half the challenge.

To find a C, look at the black keys. There are two groupings of black keys: two keys and three keys. Look for a group of two black keys. The white key just to the left of this group is C.

Now that you’ve found C, you will be able to play the C major scale. Just start at any C and move to the right, playing each white key in sequence until you have reached the next C on the keyboard. You have now played the C major scale, one of the building blocks of learning music. The notes are as follows: C D E F G A B.

Many popular songs can be played with this scale. You can play the melody of Old MacDonald using these keys. You can also play Let It Be by the Beatles, using only the C major scale. Both the melody and chords of the song can be played using the white keys.

Of course, no one wants to stop learning there. Learning some basic chords will be the next step. A basic C chord is played by placing the thumb on a C, the middle finger on an E, and the pinky on the G. Play these keys at the same time and you have played the C chord.

There are many more scales and chords to learn, but any beginner can start with C and create some nice results. Learning music needs to be fun, as theory and technical exercises can make it seem more like work. The great thing about learning how to play chords and melodies in C is that pretty much any white key melody will work over any white key chord progression. For someone learning to play the piano, this is encouraging.

Learning music can be easy and enjoyable when a beginner starts off on the right key. By following the easy steps outlined here, anyone can make beautiful music from day one. The greatest musical minds in the world all started off at the beginning and so can you.