Playing an instrument is fun… or at least it should be. Theory? Well, the existence of any fun factor can be a little more difficult to find, but we have to try if only “because you have to” will only get you so far! Fortunately, there are things that can help.
So, what is the fun stuff you can do?
I like flash cards because they can be a really fun way to learn. What on earth, you may well ask, are flash cards? Well, basically, they are small cards which have various musical symbols (notes, key signatures, intervals etc) printed on one side with the answer to what that symbol is on the other side of the card. This means you can have some fun with guessing game type questions. And (possibly) pretend to know more than you really do! My personal favourites are the Poco Studio series by Ying Ying Ng. They are a little bit dearer than some of the others, but are well-thought out, with lots of content, and kids seem to love the colours. Not me so much though – my cataracts are kicking in!
One of the pioneers of this approach was Maureen Cox. Her “Theory is Fun” series have been best sellers since they were first published in the early 1990’s, and her series of books are regularly up-dated to take account of changes to the exam board syllabus requirements. They are useful back up books to help give students extra help, and are aimed at getting through an exam. These days there is much more to choose from. Lina Ng’s colourful Theory of Music Made Easy and My First/Second/Third Theory are designed at a pre-grade 1 level and are packed with examples and exercises. Well worth looking at.
Sooner or later, your child (or you) will have to or want to take grade exams with either the ABRSM, Trinity or the London College of Music. Our theory section will give you links to those publications, but here also there are lots of extra books which can help. Guy Cremnitz’s book have loads of examples to work through which make them good value. I also particularly like Loh Phaik Kheung’s “Theory of Music Made Easy” series, which is one of the few books published independently of the examination boards that actually goes up to Grade 8. And if I were doing Grade 8 music theory, I would take all the help I could get!
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