Why we teach theory alongside the instrument

Music theory has a reputation among children as the boring part, and among parents as the optional part. It is neither, and the way it is usually taught is largely responsible for both misunderstandings.

What theory actually is

Theory is not a separate subject that happens to concern music. It is the explanation of what a student's hands are already doing.

A child who has learned a piece by ear and by memory knows, physically, that a certain chord creates tension and the next one resolves it. Theory gives that knowledge a name, and once it has a name the child can find it in the next piece, and the one after that.

Taught properly, theory turns a student from someone who learns pieces into someone who understands music. Those are very different musicians.

Why we teach it alongside, not afterwards

The common approach is to leave theory until an examination requires it, then compress it into an unpleasant few months. This is why so many people remember it as dull.

We teach it from the beginning, in small quantities, attached to whatever the student is playing. Notation is taught when the student needs to read something. Key signatures are taught when a piece has one. Intervals are taught by ear first and named afterwards.

Solfège and rhythm training sit alongside this - singing, clapping, counting - which is how the Eastern European tradition we teach in has always done it.

The practical reason, if you want one

Both major examination boards require it, and families are regularly caught out.

The RCM will not issue a practical certificate at the higher levels until the theory co-requisite is complete, and it must be done within five years of the practical examination.

The ABRSM will not let a student even enter Grade 6, 7 or 8 until they have passed Grade 5 Music Theory. A capable pianist can be entirely ready to play and unable to sit the examination.

A student who has been learning theory all along meets neither obstacle. A student who has not may lose a year.

Why we also teach it in a group

Music Theory is one of the subjects we teach both privately and as a small group class, and the group version is not simply the cheaper option.

Theory benefits from other people in a way instrumental lessons do not. Children hear each other answer, argue about which chord it was, and discover that the person next to them found it hard too. Ear training in particular works better when there is someone to compare with.

It is also the one part of a musical education that a child can share with friends, which for some students is the difference between tolerating theory and enjoying it.

What it is not

It is not arithmetic in a musical costume, and a student who can complete theory exercises correctly while hearing nothing has been badly taught.

Every theory concept we teach is connected to something audible. If a student cannot hear it, they have not learned it yet - whatever the worksheet says.