Welcome to this week's blog post. I want to talk to you about the importance of learning music theory for guitarists and how it should definitely be part of your skill set. Music theory should bridge the gap between understanding and expression, and you should learn it in a way that allows you to instantly access the information you need during your creative process.

Over the past five weeks, I've been sharing techniques for effectively learning theory. I want to emphasize that building a habit of practicing music theory is crucial for your long-term success. This week I will go over a simple way to build this habit into your practice time.

The Essentials

Don't underestimate this aspect, even if you've played guitar for some time. If that's the case, identify the gap between the musical elements you understand and those you deeply know without thinking. This will reveal what you need to work on. If you're starting from the beginning, focus on familiarizing yourself with core music elements.

Here are four areas to concentrate on during practice:

1. Major Scales / Major Keys

• With only 15 keys, and 3 having enharmonic equivalents (C#/Db, F#/Gb, and Cb/B), spend 12 weeks learning a key per week.

• Regularly review the scale you're working on and write the scale degree above each note. For example, if asked for the 6th of A Major, the answer is F#.

• Refer to this blog post (Should I Learn Music Theory - Part 1) and incorporate the techniques in your practice.

2. Spelling Triads

• Triads are vital to chords and harmony. Understanding them will clarify chords on your fretboard and improve your connection with what you hear and play.

• Refer to this blog post (Should You Learn Music Theory? - Part 2) and include the techniques in your practice.

3. Spelling Intervals

• Intervals connect everything since the smallest musical relationship involves two notes. Although it takes time to see benefits, investing that time is worthwhile.

• Refer to these two blog posts (Should You Learn Music Theory? - Part 3) (Should You Learn Music Theory? - Part 4) and add the techniques to your practice.

4. Triads in a Key (Next Steps)

• Learn the chords in each key, remembering that in a major key, I, IV, and V are Major triads, while ii, iii, and vi are minor triads.

Learning in a Community

The most effective way to learn is with a community of like-minded individuals. Join the freteleven community to access resources, engage with others, and maintain accountability for your progress in a supportive environment.

If interested, sign up using this link (https://community.freteleven.com/invitation?code=J58BD2), check out previous posts, and don't hesitate to reach out to me for more information. Let's improve our guitar skills together!