Please tell me someone on my list still knows music theory!

[baratron]

Gah. I wish I still remembered any music theory. I was having an Aerosmith circa 1975 evening while cooking, and "Sweet Emotion" was driving me nuts - specifically, I'm sure it's not in a normal major or minor scale. I swear it starts off with a diminished chord, but Richard was insisting it was the normal major. I have this vague recollection of when I used to know music theory & worked out that it was written in the Dorian mode, or something. But I just looked up Dorian mode on Wikipedia and the entry makes very little sense, because I've almost forgotten just about everything. I know what a major, harmonic minor & melodic minor sound like, and that's it. Pentatonic? Oh yeah, I heard of those once. Plagal mode? Yeah, again.

I've just added "Re-learn music theory" to my list. My list currently stands at:
- Learn Japanese
- Relearn Latin
- Relearn Greek
- Study A-level biology
- Relearn A-level physics
- Learn to speak French, properly, so I can actually speak it rather than just being able to read, write & vaguely understand aurally
- Relearn music theory

Like I'm ever going to have enough copious free time to learn even the new stuff. If I could only remember everything I've ever forgotten, I'd be sooo clever.

Meanwhile, I discover that my head really is full of song lyrics. Sang along to most of the "Toys in the Attic" album word perfectly, despite not having played it in years. Why do I have the lyrics of "Sweet Emotion" in my head to the extent I could probably sing it backwards, yet I can't remember what frigging mode it's in. Gah.

Update: I've found the score to the bass line online, legally. OK, it's in A major. All the tabs are highly simplified compared to what's played on the record, but definitely the bass line has an A --> G natural thing going on. That's a diminished seventh, isn't it?

And argh argh argh in doing a Google search I just found an FAQ for 'Revolution X'! NOOOOO!! Don't remind me of that game!! (When I was an Aerosmith fangirl, I once put £40 into a Rev X machine. I'm not joking. I wish I was.)

Comments

[baratron.livejournal.com]

If you do the Associated Board music exams (which are THE classical music certification in the UK), to take grades above grade 5 you HAVE to do Grade 5 Theory. I did Grade 5 cello and Grade 6 piano, so I had to take theory as well.

I actually did Grades 2, 4 and 5 Theory, and I think I got 98% on the Grade 5 exam. Which is what makes this so galling. (Galling - as in gall bladder. Hmmm. Haven't made that pun yet. I should.)