MUSC 1061 - Music Theory I

Credits: 3
Hours/Week: Lecture None Lab None
Course Description: This course is designed to help any student develop the analytical and compositional skills necessary for a more complete understanding of music. This course also serves as a first course in the Music Theory sequence for music students. The course focuses on melody, harmony, rhythm, and musical structure and explores various musical styles including classical, popular, blues, jazz, and folk. Topics include notation, scales and modes, keys, intervals and transposition, chords, cadences, non-chord tones, and melodic structure. Students will apply music theory concepts by analyzing music examples and by writing and playing short music compositions.
MnTC Goals
6 Humanities/Fine Arts

Prerequisite(s): Music AFA students must be concurrently enrolled in MUSC 1071  or instructor consent.
Corequisite(s): None
Recommendation: None

Major Content

1. Cadences: full, half, plagal, deceptive cadences
2. Chords: major, minor, augmented and diminished triads, root positions and inversions of triads, basic seventh chords, Roman numeral analysis, figured bass
3. Intervals and transposition: interval quantity and quality, consonant and dissonant intervals, transposition, transposition of instruments
4. Melodic structure: motives, phrases, sequences, periods
5. Non-chord tones: appoggiaturas, escape tones, retardations, suspensions, passing tones, neighboring tones, pedal tones, anticipations, changing tones
6. Notation: pitch, clefs, rhythm, meter, dynamics
7. Scales, modes, keys: major scales, natural, harmonic and melodic minor scales, the seven Greek modes, all major and minor keys

1. Analyze a piece of music according to basic structural elements.
2. Construct and analyze triads and seventh chords
3. Transpose melodies and chord progressions in all keys.
4. Write a piece of music according to basic structural elements.
5. Explain basic principles of music notation.
6. Construct, identify and play the various scales and modes in all keys.
7. identify style characteristics within a piece of music.

06. 04. Engage in the creative process or interpretive performance.

06. 05. Articulate an informed personal reaction to works in the arts and humanities.

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