Syntorial But For Piano?

Discussion in 'Software' started by Daisy69, Oct 21, 2022.

  1. Daisy69

    Daisy69 Platinum Record

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    Is there offline software like Syntorial but for learning basic and more advanced stuff like Scales, Chords,
    Progressions, Harmony, Melody, Triads, Circle Of Fifth etc. etc.?

    If not. What offline stuff you recommend?
     
    Daisy69, Oct 21, 2022
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  3. BlackWinny

    BlackWinny Platinum Record

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    Books.
    And practice.
    There is no secret.


    I lead music teaching and practice workshops for children and adult patients in a French hospital. Teaching and practicing arts such as music, drawing, painting, sculpture (including modeling), writing, and learning a foreign language using a non-latin script (Chinese, Japanese, Hebrew, Arabic, Greek, etc.), is a major activity not only in maintaining cognitive activities of people but it is now known that it is also a very important element in the return to health of sick people.
    In fact, my old and intensive music practice since the mid-60's (see my profile) was probably one of the reasons why I myself overcome two serious illnesses (one is neurological and the other one is a bone marrow cancer). For the first one the disease is definitely there but I live with it without losing my morale, and for the second one I am still in remission, but spending again a large part of my time in hospital every week, and this is what made me say yes when three years ago a patient support association proposed me to take part in a project of development of artistic practices in the hospital setting.

    For this purpose, hosting myself the sessions about music I lend my own synthesizers and my own electric piano as well as my flutes, and the hospital association (thanks to grants) has bought guitars, another second-hand piano, MIDI master keyboards and other flutes for adult beginners and for the children. I also introduce all these patients to computer music with DAW (Cakewalk) and VST plugins thanks to the presence of MIDI master keyboards. The patients can come with their own laptops when they have one, and there is no legal issue since all the plugins and the DAW are freeware. The purchase of a small quiet electronic drum set (probably this one or something similar in quality and in the same prices) is in project for the next year. Without exception, all the patients are absolutely passionate about what they discover in this music learning activity. Some of them, who had no knowledge of music on the first day, are now excellent amateur composers, sometimes after less than a year of practice!

    If you want, I'll list (with links) the best books I use to teach them the music theory and to use as support for training and practice. I can make you a list of books, a list divided in such sections :
    • Those for the learning of the music theory (for classical music, for modern music, and for computer music)
    • Those which are specifically made for learning of the rhythms and for the practice of first levels of drums and even for programmable drum machines (Roland TR-808, TR-909, Linn LM-1, Eko ComputeRhythm, Korg Minipop-7, Oberheim DMX, etc.) with modern rhythms as well as with the great latin standards.
    • Those for practicing and improving your skill at the keyboards (piano, organ, and other keyboards) with specific books for skills, and books for training and discovering beautiful Ambient and New Age musics (the best genre to learn the harmony and the melody structures by quite easy scores)
    • Those for the learning of how to compose using cleverly the harmony, melody and rhythm knowledge.
    • And those for the technical aspects of the modern music (the subtractive synthesis, the effects and how to understand and use them correctly, the sound design, the mixing of songs, the mastering of albums).

    I just have to select the best references among my books (I have links for them all, either as paper books or as ebooks). And you'll just have to visit these pages and make your choice. All these books being books that I know and use because they are really excellent.

    Just tell me if you are interested.
     
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    BlackWinny, Oct 22, 2022
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  4. Daisy69

    Daisy69 Platinum Record

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    Thank you for the answer.
    Yeah sure. Other media like books as well.
    I think all of them will be helpful.
    So if you find time. Sure
    Cheers :mates:
     
    Daisy69, Oct 22, 2022
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  5. orbitbooster

    orbitbooster Audiosexual

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    I guess you want an interactive course?
    I saw once something, but I can't recall its name, I'll make a search, in case I'll post it.

    In the meanwhile there are good tools for Android (but I think for Apple too) that can help in scales and chords, also in reversing - click all keys you want and it will tell you which scale/chord is or ask the scale/chord from a root note, like this (Piano Companion):
    piano comp.jpg
     
    orbitbooster, Oct 22, 2022
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  6. Xupito

    Xupito Audiosexual

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    Besides giving you props for your hard work (and while we are at it for your avatar ;) I agree generally with what you say.

    Still, if you have a MIDI keyboard a program to learn could be very useful and feasible. It could include reading heavy theory and practice, No game-like like others that are also fine.

    I tried one ages ago and was dope. And I didn't even had a MIDI keyboard, used a virtual software one. I'm talking XP days. Why there aren't anymore is a mistery to me.
     
    Xupito, Oct 22, 2022
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  7. orbitbooster

    orbitbooster Audiosexual

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    You mean like VMPK 0.8?
     
    orbitbooster, Oct 22, 2022
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  8. Xupito

    Xupito Audiosexual

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    Yes, not the same but the same type of tool.
    A very old one: Bome's Virtual MIDI Keyboard. Still my favorite.
     
    Last edited: Oct 22, 2022
    Xupito, Oct 22, 2022
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  9. BlackWinny

    BlackWinny Platinum Record

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    As promised here are the references of the books I use for my own practice and for my teaching activity in the patient support association in the French hospital.

    I have a great admiration especially for three book editors and publishers:
    • All the books from Hal Leonard editions. An astronomic choice of awesome books for all the levels.
    • All the books from Alfred Music editions. Another astronomic choice of awesome books for all the levels.
    • All the books from Berklee Press Editions

    But I have also found true gems among books from other publishers. Here is a list that I hope will be perhaps set as sticky on the forum (if the administrators agree...).

    I have of course removed the books in French. All the books here are American books or English books or Canadian books.

    Visit the linked pages. Almost all these books are available either as paper book either as ebook (and not only in the Kindle format, you will find them in many online bookshops in epub or in PDF format). It is only by simplicity that I have given here the links to their Amazon pages, don't see there any personal reason, I purchase my books also on other stores...)


    Here is the (long) list, that I have more or less ordered as you will see (just a last point: I have ALL these books! Purchased by me... or by the hospital library or by the university). Each section is short enough to be easy to browse within the web pages to make one's preference:


    Music theory and introduction to playing an instrument (piano, keyboard, guitar... and computer)

    Specifically intended to computer users

    Specifically intended to guitar users

    For all instruments

    Understanding the (very easy) mathematics behind all the principles of the music


    Rhythms, drums and percussions


    Practice and skill development with scores, mainly for piano and keyboards


    Easy scores from classic masters and modern composers

    Classic masters and modern composers

    Modern composers


    The art of composing, without forgetting some recalls of the music theory


    Synthesis, effects, mixing, and mastering




    And to finish, here are in addition the web pages I use as online tools. It is a list of some great online tools that will help you find everything you need to start building your chord progressions and begin entering the wonderful world of musical scales. All of these tools are disarmingly simple, yet they are very comprehensive for at least the first four or five years of your music practice. You have a lot to look forward to... :

    1. https://www.scales-chords.com/ (see the blue menu at the top)
    2. https://www.pianochorddictionary.com/ (uses the tool and also visit the black menu at the top)
    3. https://fr.tabnabber.com/ (for French readers... use the green menu on the left)
    4. https://www.all-guitar-chords.com/ (particularly well suited for guitarists)
    5. http://colt.enix.org/Songbook/Piano/PianoChord.html
    6. http://colt.enix.org/Songbook/Piano/PianoChordScale.htm
    7. https://www.looknohands.com/chordhouse/ (Guitar Easy, Guitar Advanced, and Piano, and if you go to Guitar Easy or Piano, look at the little drop-down menu at the bottom of the screen... it lets you choose the instrument for the MP3 preview)
    8. https://www.8notes.com/extras/
    9. https://www.pianoscales.org/ (menu on the left. I particularly like the Exotic Scales page)
    10. https://randscullard.com/CircleOfFifths/ (the best when you know your music theory well)

    There are probably others, but for sure they will be tools that do the same thing as these ones.

    There is something for everyone, and all of them are interactive, complete, and totally free. Some of them are even usable on a tablet or even a smartphone. No need to spend a single cent. This is the kind of advice you like to find in the pages of some forums instead of promotions of cardboard or even plastic products that are not free but are outdated and not useful for today's music.

    So with these tools above, you will be able to put into practice and start "composing". I put "composing" in quotation marks, because composing in the true sense of the word is not only handling scales and chord progressions, it is also learning to create emotions, using other notions such as knowing the reasons for these chord progressions, learning modes, cadences (very important, the cadences, totally underestimated in modern house, techno and hip-hop music), learning the harmonization of scales (a technique that helps you find the best chord progressions and choose the right key to express correctly what you want to express in the work piece), knowing the rhythmic signatures, learning to master the arrangement and the orchestration (why this sound and not that one, why this combination of instruments and not that one), knowing the advantages and disadvantages of the tetrads, the tritone, etc. You will acquire this knowledge through the natural learning of music theory. Is it daunting? No. We don't have to think of music theory as a daunting activity anymore when we learn it slowly, by experimenting with what we learn over time with our instruments at home. We are no longer in the era of the pink method of the 50's child pianists and the tedious learning of scales or exercises on the Czerny (although it had its interest, you will perhaps discover it later, I have included them in the books above and it is thanks to them that I have a quite good virtuosity at the piano today again at 63 y.o.). The goal is not necessarily to become a professional musician (in that case you take lessons in a music school). And don't think that music theory is "useless", because if you think about it... all the musicians who were or are really famous have been through it. Andrew Latimer, Aphex Twin, Brian May, Camel, Carlos Santana, David Bowie, David Gilmour, Depeche Mode, Edgar Froese, Eric Clapton, Frank Gambale, Frank Zappa, Gary Moore, Gary Numan, Genesis, Giorgio Moroder, Herbie Hancock, Jean-Michel Jarre, Joe Satriani, John Petrucci, Jon Lord, Kate Bush, Keith Emerson, Klaus Schulze, Kraftwerk, Mike Oldfield, Patrick Moraz, Paul McCartney, Peter Baumann, Peter Gabriel, Phil Collins, Phil Manzanera, Pink Floyd, Rick Wakeman, Rick Wright, Ritchie Blackmore, Roger Waters, Steve Hackett, Steve Hillage, Steve Vai (one of the authors among the books above), Supertramp, Tangerine Dream, Tony Banks, Vangelis (and he, hat tip, he learned music theory quite late in his life), Vince Clarke, Wendy Carlos, and the list would go on for pages. ... if you know these names and if they are so famous all over the world it's because they didn't just improvise their music, they took the trouble to learn music theory. And don't think that it's always through academic courses.
    :wink:
     
    Last edited: Oct 23, 2022
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    BlackWinny, Oct 23, 2022
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  10. Kyunghee

    Kyunghee Member

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    Merci beaucoup ! If its no bother I'd be interested in the books in French as well.:bow::mates:
     
    Kyunghee, Oct 23, 2022
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  11. BlackWinny

    BlackWinny Platinum Record

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    Ok. I'm gonna make a little addition for my French books.

    As "avant-goût" I use mainly the books (in PDF+MP3/MP4) from Play Music (all their books and videos are awesome), and "Le Guide de la Théorie de la Musique" de Claude Abromont (this book is considered as one of the best books ever in French by all the French music teachers), and some others. I also like a lot the French translation of these excellent books on the Circle of 5ths, because some of my "students" don't know a word of English.

    I'll build an addition as little new list for French users of the forum within the next hours or days.
    :wink:
     
    BlackWinny, Oct 23, 2022
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  12. rudolph

    rudolph Audiosexual

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    My best advise for Daisy69 is to find and pay a good teacher instead of bury her-himself in tons of books and tutorials. In the first months of learning an instrument is very important the presence of a guide checking the hands and arms positions, the body tensions, etc. and giving examples of the best way to play the exercises and how they should sound.
     
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    rudolph, Oct 23, 2022
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  13. orbitbooster

    orbitbooster Audiosexual

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    That of course would be the best option, but it costs.
    So at least to begin, a simplified music theory book should be enough to channel your targets.
    After that you can invest some money to do serious work.
     
    orbitbooster, Oct 23, 2022
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  14. BlackWinny

    BlackWinny Platinum Record

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    Yes. And it's not possible for everybody.
    In the village where I grew up it was a 17 kilometer (34 kilometer round trip) drive to the nearest small town, the only place where you could find a music teacher. In my village there were only four people practicing music (this is still the case today), a village school teacher (who played the organ in the village church at mass every Sunday), an old man playing traditional French country songs at his fiddle, and my mother (who had been pianist and violinist in a Chinese orchestra before coming in France) and my uncle who had been flutist in the same orchestra. None of them had the opportunity to teach music, because of lack of time or because too old and not well versed in theory (the fiddle player). I had the chance to be the only possible student of my mother and my uncle. And there are millions of villages like mine all over the world. Not everyone lives in a city or even a small town where there is a professor of music beside.

    I think also to millions of people too poor to afford a music school, even in town.
     
    Last edited: Oct 24, 2022
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    BlackWinny, Oct 24, 2022
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  15. Kyunghee

    Kyunghee Member

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    Thanks man, prends ton temps !
    Im a long time guitar player but I only started to get into piano and music theory, quite a fascinating journey ahead.
     
    Kyunghee, Oct 24, 2022
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