In Theory...

Oh, if I could only count how many puns have been made throughout my five semesters of music theory classes...one of my favorites has to be "I'll see you in theory!"

And that's one of the clever ones. :/

I've been thinking a lot about music theory this week. My mom finally had her "I told you so" speech that I've been waiting for, since when I was in high school she was convinced that I should be a music major long enough to study theory - she thought I'd love it, or at least love knowing how to use it.

Of course I didn't agree with her and continued on my merry way to be a musical theater/dance major. Oh, sure, I'd take the fundamentals class so I'd know the basics, but otherwise I didn't think I could handle being a music major. I didn't believe I was good enough, especially after having a few older siblings who had majored in music at some point. Oh, how I have learned.

The first day of music theory we had to take a placement test, an assessment of how much we already knew with a possibility of testing out of the class to advance more quickly.
I maybe knew a couple of things, like durations and key signatures. Most of the test I left blank and I was panicking. This was never going to work, I didn't know music theory at all! When I turned in my test, the teacher told me "Oh, yes. You're in the right place."

Maybe that was supposed to make me feel better. All I knew was that I felt like an idiot for not already knowing theory and I formed a goal to learn all I could in that class.

First semester freshman year was stressful - I was extremely busy with my theater and dance focus, but the one class I took the most seriously was music theory. Oh, the nights I spent staying up late, agonizing over rhythm until the inevitable breakdown into tears... Even though I was consistently getting A's on the homework assignments, I was still convinced that I was bad at this.

Then one day I was the last person in the classroom, still checking over an assignment before going to my next class. My teacher came up to me and, upon seeing what I was clearly still puzzling over, he said "You don't need to worry about this. You're really good at theory." Gives me a quizzical look.  "What's your major again?"

Maybe he didn't mean it that way, but the words were like music (ha!) to my ears. It was almost as if he had given me permission to see myself as a musician, telling me that I could succeed if I just kept trying.

It was a turning point in my career. At the end of the semester I talked to him and switched to music as my major, and I have never regretted it. Thriving in theory, delighting in my piano lessons, and looking forward to choir every day, it is a lifestyle that I truly enjoy. I work hard - just this past semester I pulled two all-nighters in a row to get my music finals completed - but the work is always rewarding.

Now I have made it through all my theory classes for my undergraduate. There is a possibility of my being able to help tutor students next year, which has me excited. Even though I'm done taking classes in theory, however, I will always be able to use it. Today I started analyzing a piece that I'm working on for piano, and my mom could tell you I was sitting there with a pencil and my music, scribbling all over, exclaiming every now and then with an "aha!" or "oh, for cool!" as I geeked out over the Medtner piece.

Why do I now love theory? Well, for years I didn't know theory and I tried to play piano anyway, making it up when I didn't quite understand what was going on in the music. Now that I have the knowledge, playing is made so much simpler. Of course practice helps that, too, but understanding how music is written and the technicalities used by the composer are extremely useful tidbits of information when attempting to learn to play a lengthy composition. It's also exciting that something I have been working so hard to comprehend is now able to be a tool that I can use, in a way giving back some of what I poured into it.

Theoretically, music is one of the best life decisions I have made so far :)


"You can only become truly accomplished at something you love. Don't make money your goal. Instead pursue the things you love doing and then do them so well that people can't take their eyes off  of you." ~Maya Angelou