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Welcome to my weekly blog post about music for musicians. This is part IV of a series about music theory. One thing I would like to add to last week's blog posting about intervals is I need to mention that there is one other type of interval, minor. A minor interval would be an interval that has one whole step and then one half. For example, if you go to a middle C on a keyboard and go up 1 and 1/2 steps to an Eb, you have a minor third interval. Intervals are a beautiful way of complimenting a song, (at the right time) or as written in a great work. One of the best examples of interval work can be heard in Johann Sebastian Bach's Chaconne. I realize that many of you are much younger than I and are probably wondering about why you would want to listen to 'old' music? Well, Mr. Bach was THE eminent Rock Star of his day, but I understand why it could seem outdated. I looked around and found a music instructor who in her 20's, realizes she needed to add some more up-to-date examples of intervals. Her name is: Ashley Evelyn Mazur. She has a blog page where she culled together "29 fresh, modern songs" that demonstrate the concepts I've been discussing here for the last 3 installments. That pretty much covers everything that I wanted to discuss about intervals. The next topic I would like to cover with you is: Triads. Triads will probably be the most recognizable sound for musicians as they’re constructed of a tonic, mediant, and dominant tones, or, a first, third, and fifth. They are also some of the richest structures that a musician works with. Many instrumentalists have seen chordal sheet music that has basic triads: C, F, and G listed. These can be mixed up with different bass notes, inverted, added to as with extended notes, e.g., C2, and even enhanced with augmented or diminished tones. Building on some of the previous blogs we can see that triads are simply a combination of different portions of a diatonic scale. These can get complex very quickly, but if you feel you're getting lost or confused, read my first two music theory blogs as a refresher: https://www.matthewgoolsby.com/blog. I'm going to stop there for this post because I'd rather not overload you, the reader. I would like to however change the subject next week and address a subject I read about today: Digital music. There have been some good online articles recently about the proliferation of digital music and how it's changed the landscape for artists who want to get their music distributed. I will discuss that more next week. In the meantime, go forth and make music! #Music #Theory #performance #God

Welcome to my blog where I offer tips for musicians. This is installment #9 for 2018. I recently found something I had written 10 years ago by request of some people I had played with. They were wondering about music theory and why it was important. So, why not share it with you too! Let me first start by saying that I've heard this phrase more times than I can count: "I don't need to know theory. That's for musicians." Let's do a little fact-checking on that statement. A) If you are trying to play an instrument or sing a song, then guess what, you're trying to be a musician! B) If you have the desire to play or sing, then guess what, you're trying to be a musician! You probably noticed the word 'trying' in there. Yes, it is true that one is not really a musician until they get a little more serious about the art of music. Having said that, one doesn't have to be making money or even performing in front of others to be a musician. For all practical purposes, you could just be doing it as a hobby. But, you are still doing the art of music! To belabor this point a little more, you don't hear someone who paints or draws referred to as a dabbler or scribbler, so let's get past that notion of what a musician is or is not. Now that the air has been cleared, if you are seriously wanting to be a musical artist, then why not learn more about the craft? Sure, you can sit down and play a song on guitar or piano and that's great. You could even sing tunes to the radio. But, and this is important, if you really want to learn a craft, why not study how it works? That's where this blog comes in. Now that we've gotten some of the important details out of the way, the next step is to talk about music theory. One of the most influential composers and professors was Walter Piston. Every music student is or should be aware of his definitive writings on music theory. His book 'Harmony' is the musician's bible of music theory and composition. I was utterly fascinated when I first read his book in my music theory classes. His writing style is straightforward and written in a down-to-earth form that doesn't patronize or belittle the reader. When I wrote the document I mentioned above for other musicians I was working with, I referred to his book in terms of scale structures: 'Scales are the organizational representation of a key signature. For example, in the key of C major which has no sharps or flats, there are eight tones in a C major scale. They are arranged in steps like so: C –whole- D –Whole- E –Half- F –Whole- G –Whole- A –Whole- B –Half- C The indication of whole or half between the tones represents the steps or frets between each note. Therefore, this is a C-natural scale. As Walter Piston states in his book called ‘Harmony’: “It is customary to refer to the scale degrees by Roman numerals: Tonic (the key – note) Supertonic (the next step above the tonic) Mediant (halfway from the tonic to the dominant) Subdominant (as far below the tonic as the dominant is above it) Dominant (actually a dominant element in the key) Submediant (halfway down from the tonic to subdominant) Leading – tone (with melodic tendency toward the tonic)"' Let's call it a day on music theory for now. Next week I'm going to write more about this subject. It should be fun AND engaging! #Instruction #Musicians #artistry

Today's blog installment, (Number 6 of the year if you're keeping track), is about recording. So why the dog picture you say? Well, let me get right into that. Many people have watched American Idol over the years and seen numerous people audition for a coveted spot to become America's next great phenom. I must confess that I don't much care for the show, but when my wife has watched it, I occasionally will sit down and listen to a few auditions. This picture is representative of what the auditioners think they sound like. They think: "I'm so good at this." "They love me." "It's wonderful that people all over the country and world get to here my talent." Then comes the shocker. Randy Jackson used to have a saying: "Yo, dawg, check it out." And then the dreaded phrase, 'What was that?' from Simon Cowell. You can sympathize with one who auditions on the show but is clueless about how they sound. In fact, now that their world is shattered or they're still in denial, what do they do next? Well, there are three options: Quit Try again Practice more, then try again Which would you do? Okay, there is a fourth option. Record yourself! There's really no excuse these days. You must learn how to record yourself and SERIOUSLY scrutinize what you sound like. This is where the subjective part of you becomes objective. Like a Judge in American Idol, you must listen to yourself and see what areas you haven't worked enough on, what things need honing and what don't, and if necessary, get some help where you're falling short. Help doesn't have to be professional. It can be from someone who likes to help musicians or is just interested in seeing what you've got to work with. There are lots of options but I would recommend finding someone who you trust to help you. Look around, ask friends or family for suggestions, but by all means don't give up! You never know that you may have the talent and creative energy to be a Diva yourself. It's also enough to just enjoy yourself with your music and never be a well known musician. Fulfilling your dreams as you see them is enough, Dawg! #Instruction #Musicians #Musicrecordingsoftware #performance

Fellow web travelers, today's blog (Installment #5 of the year), is about music school. No, this isn't going to be a talk about how to get into music school, auditions, curriculum, or even survival. This is going to be about the school of music called life! I'm also going to try to write some of this blog in Spanish (Español) since there are people from Brazil, Mexico, and Spain reading this. If you read english only, please skip ahead at this point: A mi amigos quien hablan espanol, muchas gracias por leer este blog. ¡Bienvenidos! Y para aquellos quien están celebrando Carnival, yo espero que esta vez sea muy agradable para todos. Este blog es para ayudando a los músicos quien necesitan consejos sobre cómo tocar y disfrutar de lo que hacen mejor. ¡Muy bien! Now, back to english. The subject for today is music school and the first impression that comes to mind for many of us is sitting in a classroom listening to lectures and taking tests. Well, it's much more than that Thank God! Everywhere we go we can learn from our experiences about music. For example, this morning I woke up to hearing a bird singing. When I'm with a friend that I really enjoy, there's a certain rhythm to our relationship. Even the rising and setting of the sun has its own tempo! What I'd like to do is to stretch your thinking in this blog post. Take a look at the world in terms of rhythm, tempo, and keys. See if you can find patterns in nature or other parts of life that can enhance your music. There are plenty of opportunities every day. Take a look at the picture below to see what I'm talking about. We will discuss this more in coming blogs. Enjoy the music of life today! One small P.S. - There's now a Musician's Forum on this website. Its intent is for musicians to connect and discuss musical topics in a safe, respectful way. If you're interested, consider joining. #Instruction #Musicians #Musicartistry #Rhythm

Hopefully the subject of today's blog caught your attention. (This is 2018's installment #3 blog) You may be a wiz at math or struggle with it like many people do. But, did you know that music and math have a tremendous commonality? It's true. One of the great geniuses of Western European music is: Johann Sebastian Bach , or, J.S. Bach as he's commonly known in classical music circles. Mr. Bach lived a few hundred years ago and wrote music for his church services on a weekly basis. Now, I play almost every week at church, but writing music every week is astounding! And we're not talking about a simple song. No, he wrote magical musical pieces that have intricate counterpoint in them. They're still studied in any music school worth its salt because they demonstrate the composer's ability to weave intricate phrases and scale structures together to make a compelling and ear-pleasing work. I mention this because of the symmetry of math and its sibling: music. Math itself is a very profound discipline to study and use. Imagine highways, computers, space missions, or even medicine being formulated or used without it. Impossible! If you've ever struggled with a complex equation in geometry or algebra, then you know that the brain power required to solve problems is also the same that can build a beautiful melodic composition. Imagine that for a moment; a beautiful piece of music has been composed, written, arranged, and then performed by highly analytical processes within our brains. Music can bring one to tears, inspire, sadden, and evoke any number of emotions. Now for the practical point of this blog: How do you, the musician, use these analytical processes to get out of your musical ability all that you can? I'm going to leave you with that point until the next blog. Give it some thought.... #Musicians #WebsiteDesign #Mathematics

Well, this is post #2 of the year and I thought that going back in time would be appropriate. I don't literally mean that I have a time machine, but I do have lots of good memories from when I first started doing music. It seemed relevant to look back at that time and offer up a couple of tips for the reader. When I was very young, I got signed-up for group guitar lessons. This was exciting and challenging at the same time. I remember racing home and wanting to practice because I had learned some new songs! I'm sure my playing wasn't very good at the time, but I stuck with it and then got to take private lessons as a young teenager. If you're young and you want to learn how to play an instrument, I can't begin to tell you how important it is for your parents to find someone competent to help you learn. You must also like your teacher! If you don't, see if you can find one you think will better suit you. Good teachers are hard to find, but bad ones are everywhere. Let me be fair about this too. I've taught many students, adults and kids, and there are some who are very serious about practicing. Many of them though are not serious. So in all fairness, there are some students who really need to be moved on by a teacher. Better to move them on than to waste time and money. One other comment I'd like to interject here: There are numerous online teaching methods and tutorials. I'm sure some of them are no doubt very good! However, nothing can replace the face-to-face time a teacher and student have. It's so good to hear someone give feedback in the same room about your playing. I still hear compliments (and criticisms) of my playing in my head every now and then. My final tip is about your personal ability to deal with criticism. If you are thin-skinned then taking lessons with someone will probably not be advantageous right away. Maybe you want to do some practicing on your own and get some confidence before trying lessons. That's totally cool! Why spend money if you'll be frustrated? For the others who are fine with some level of criticism, (and by the way, I mean constructive criticism in all of this writing,) listen to what your teachers have to say but don't let that sway you from your mission: Becoming a better player! I do have a picture here of guitarists, but these tips apply to any kind of instrument. I've heard students at music school practicing for hours. There were: trombonists, trumpeters, pianists, vocalists, cellists, etc. You get the point. But they never let constructive criticism stop them from attaining their objective: Playing! Now get out there, and perform! #Musicians #performance #music #Instruction

¡Feliz Navidad y Próspero Año Nuevo! A mis amigos quien hablan español, ¡que seas bendicido con amor, risas, y música! Este es un temporada para todos gustar familia y amigos durante el nacimiento de Jesu Cristo. Es con mucho gusto que te deseamos Feliz Navidad! #Holidays #Musicians #Christmas #Navidad #Amigos #Familia

It's getting to be that time of year again where our thoughts turn to family, fun, and food! For many this is a joyous time of the year. For others, this time can be difficult as it can bring up memories of disappointments and difficulties. Either category you may fall into, this time of year has some great music! It can uplift and encourage. I would like to encourage anyone who may need it to download a couple of the tracks I've posted on this website, especially Silent Night and O Holy Night. They're tracks that I love to play and listen to every year. Musicians by nature are very philosophical as they love to question everything. I've not met a musician who didn't ask questions about life, love, and especially human nature. What does this have to do with this website you may be asking? Well, let me explain. We all have an innate desire to express ourselves. It's a God-given attribute embedded in our make-up. One of the great ways musicians have to express themselves is through their music. Why not create a website to share that creation with others? After all, that's what I'm doing here! And for any who may struggle during the holidays, I can relate completely to how you feel. I spent many years as a single man who craved the company of someone to love. I did find a refuge in music that helped my heart to feel God's presence during those difficult times. Being alone doesn't mean that we're not loved. We are loved passionately by the God who created us! If you'd like to share your music on the web like I'm doing, send me an email or give me a call or text. It could change your whole outlook on life! Contact info can be found at: https://gentlehavenmusic.com/about #Holidays #Christmas #Thanksgiving #Musicians #WebsiteDesign #Musicartistry

Writer's note: This post was written while waiting for a flight in the airport which goes to show that creativity can happen anywhere! Have you ever played a riff in a performance and then thought: "That probably sucked"? If you are anything like me, then yes you have. After years of performing and leading worship, I can say emphatically that as an artist, our craft is challenging! Even my dear wife who knits for fun criticizes her own work. In fact, she's her own worst critic. Instead of being subjective, I've found that we need to take a stance of objectivity in our playing. Ask yourself: How am I sounding in this phrase, song, work or whatever you're playing. Ask someone to record you or record yourself. (See my blog on Gentle Haven Music for more about recording software.) An adage that I've learned over the years is: Less is more! Think of movies or books that give you a hint of what will or has happened but leaves your imagination to fill in the rest. It's the same with music. You can always play better. But maybe it's time to play less! This can also make you sound better. Using filler is an art, not a science. Please email me if you're interested in learning more about building a web presence and remember, artistry is really a mix of your right AND your left brain! #Musicartistry #Performance #Musicrecordingsoftware

Today I'm going to talk about effects and how to incorporate them into your playing. If you already do this, very cool! Maybe you can help someone else out. If you need a little help, that's why I'm writing this post today. I've been using effects for decades and have found that most guitar players struggle with getting good effects synced with their playing. That's not to say they're not trying, but often times it comes across as hair-pulling noise. If you really want to get the most out of your effects, here's the good news: You gotta use them! And here's the bad news: That means, practice, practice, and yes, more practice! Having had a Dad who used to yell at me about turning the volume down, I get it. However, you've got to find a time to practice and see what works and what doesn't. Also, find someone who has experience and ask them to help. It's not as hard as you think. A couple recommendations - Okay, now you may be thinking: 'He's going to tell me what to buy next'. Actually, no! What I am going to do is recommend you try out as many different setups as you can. This will give you an idea of what works for you and what doesn't. It's kind of like shoes, what feels comfortable will most likely work best. You also need to consider whether analog or digital effects are best for your setup. They can be very different! I personally like the Boss ME 80. It gives me what I need in a compact unit as an all-in-one solution. You can also download patches from the Boss website and update it. But your situation could be very different than mine. There are great setups from Ibanez , Behringer , and numerous others. Doing a little research can go a long way. Final thoughts - There is an artistry as well as a science to using effects. My take is be judicious. Putting on reverb, distortion, EQ, compression, and delay all at the same time may sound like fun but may really turn-off your audience. Knowing your gear, your ability, and your limitations will go a long way to getting the premiere sound. #performance #effects #electricguitar #music