Docs
Music theory reference. Real explanations, not stubs. Also available as raw markdown for LLM consumption.
Fundamentals
Notes & Pitch
Western music divides the octave into 12 equally spaced pitches, called the chromatic scale. Starting from C:...
Intervals
An interval is the distance between two pitches, measured in half steps....
Scales
A scale is an ordered collection of pitches arranged by ascending or descending pitch, typically spanning one octave. Sc...
Keys & Key Signatures
A key defines which group of notes a piece of music uses as its primary tonal material. Being "in the key of C major" me...
Rhythm & Meter
Rhythm is the organization of music in time. While pitch determines what notes you play, rhythm determines when and for ...
Chords
Triads
A triad is a three-note chord built by stacking two thirds. Triads are the building blocks of all Western harmony....
Seventh Chords
Adding a fourth note (the seventh degree above the root) to a triad creates a seventh chord. Seventh chords are the stan...
Chord Extensions
Extensions are notes stacked in thirds beyond the seventh: the 9th, 11th, and 13th. They add color and complexity to sev...
Chord Inversions
An inversion changes which note is in the bass (lowest voice) without changing the chord's identity. Inversions are esse...
Voice Leading
Voice leading is the art of moving individual notes (voices) within chords as smoothly as possible from one chord to the...
Modes
What Are Modes?
A mode is a scale derived by starting on a different degree of a parent scale while keeping all the same notes. Each sta...
Major Scale Modes
The seven modes of the major scale are the foundation of modal theory. Each has a distinct sound, interval formula, and ...
Melodic Minor Modes
The melodic minor scale (1-2-b3-4-5-6-7) and its modes are essential to jazz vocabulary. In jazz, melodic minor is used ...
Harmonic Minor Modes
Harmonic minor (1-2-b3-4-5-b6-7) raises the 7th degree of natural minor to create a leading tone. The augmented 2nd betw...
Harmonic Major Modes
Harmonic major (1-2-3-4-5-b6-7) is the least explored of the four common parent scales. It lowers the 6th degree of the ...
Jazz Harmony
The ii-V-I
The ii-V-I is the most fundamental chord progression in jazz and a cornerstone of Western tonal harmony. Understanding i...
Chord-Scale Theory
Chord-scale theory matches a scale (mode) to each chord in a progression, giving the improviser a pool of available note...
Tritone Substitution
A tritone substitution replaces a dominant 7th chord with another dominant 7th chord whose root is a tritone (6 half ste...
Reharmonization
Reharmonization is the practice of replacing the original chords of a tune with different chords while keeping the melod...
Blues Harmony
The blues is the foundation of American music and one of the most versatile harmonic frameworks in existence. Its 12-bar...
Guitar in P4
Fourths Tuning Overview
All-fourths tuning (also called P4 tuning) tunes every string a perfect fourth (5 semitones) apart. From low to high: E-...
Fretboard Geometry
The all-fourths fretboard is a uniform lattice where every geometric relationship between notes is consistent across the...
Voicing Types
A voicing is a specific arrangement of a chord's notes across the strings. The same Cmaj7 chord can be voiced dozens of ...
Pentatonic System
The pentatonic scale is the single most important melodic structure for guitar. In fourths tuning, the pentatonic system...
Chord Melody Basics
Chord melody is the art of playing melody and harmony simultaneously on a single guitar. The melody sits on top of chord...