2024-01-28 Berlin School

I'm listening to Berlin Schoool: An Uncomplicated Approach by Synth Seeker because @phf@social.sdf.org recommended it.

Berlin Schoool: An Uncomplicated Approach

We were talking about music. All I do is create small jingles for my podcast but every now and then I wonder about music theory. A while ago I had saved Learn music theory in half an hour by Andrew Huang to get back to it. But all I had done about it was think to myself: Pick a scale, like this one, B Major looks nice, OK, so full full half full full full half, that’s these keys, OK, let me doodle around on these … beep beep boop boop … here we go. Or maybe do the other one, full full full half full full half … biep biep boup boup … all right! 🥳

Learn music theory in half an hour

But then I wonder: what would my next step be? Some days I look at the circle of fifth and wonder if that’s hogwash. Non-European music doesn't need it! But then again, they also use *something*. There are rules because people figured out what generally "works". Well, on the other hand there are books about many things and they are neither a replacement for spending ten thousand hours practising and the rules they espouse are often just there to get you started and then they are immediately broken.

All I know when I look at a typical drum machine or tracker setup with 8/8 or similar I immediately want to do a 9/8 Karsilama or something like that. My wife's oriental dancing and all the Turkish, Arab, Iranian and Maghreb music we listened to must have left an impression… Or confused the hell out of me, depending on your perspective. Or mine.

9/8 Karsilama

Anyway, writing all of this and I'm still not making music. What next, I wonder. Perhaps playing C Major and playing a bunch of notes it shares with another scale and then continuing with that scale is cool. Or maybe not. I don't know. Or just stay in that scale and do some drum machine and patterns below that!

That Synth Seeker video had a link to a Key Cheat Sheet Index. The effect is similar to picking scales in Garage Band or Animoog: limiting the keys I use in order to stay in that scale. Works for me!

Key Cheat Sheet Index

All this listening and writing makes me realize that it's Sunday, late at night, I should go to bed, and then I'll be working and playing role-playing games and war-games every evening until the next week-end comes around. Whaaat!

I must find time between the things I do to do the other things.

This is my life.

​#Music