If you enjoy music and would like to know more about what makes it work, this is the course for you. You'll gain a complete understanding of rhythm, melody, and harmony, and you'll be able to recognize pitches on the musical staff and on the keyboard.

Each lesson will build on previous lessons, while also introducing new musical concepts. Your course begins with an introduction to rhythm and the various aspects of rhythm; including beat, meter, note, and rest values.

You'll then learn about the role of melody in music, and you'll gain proficiency in identifying pitches by octave, building major scales, and understanding the role of keys in creating melodies.

You'll explore the keyboard in full detail, with an emphasis on the structure of major scale and the signatures of major keys. And you'll understand the many significant contributions early music theorists made to our understanding of music.

You'll also be able to build intervals, major scales, and chords. By the time you complete this comprehensive and full-featured course, you'll be able to read, write, and even play simple musical pieces on a keyboard.

To purchase this course, click the Enroll Now button below:

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Syllabus:

All courses run for six weeks, with a two-week grace period at the end. Two lessons are released each week for the six-week duration of the course. You do not have to be present when the lesson is released, but you must complete each lesson within two weeks of its release.

A new section of each course starts on the second or third Wednesday of each month. If enrolling in a series of two or more courses, please be sure to space the start date for each course at least two months apart.

Week One

Wednesday - Lesson 01

In this first lesson, we'll go through an overview of the major elements of music—melody, harmony, and rhythm. It's important that you understand these general terms because we'll explore each of them in detail in the coming lessons.

Friday - Lesson 02

Today is your introduction to the concept of rhythm. We'll explore its various components: beat, meter, and time signatures. You'll also learn how to read and apply time signatures to music.

Week Two

Wednesday - Lesson 03

We'll continue exploring meter in this lesson, and we'll look at aspects of rhythm such as syncopation and tempo. You'll learn how and why syncopation is used.

Friday - Lesson 04

Today, we'll delve into the musical concept of melody. You'll learn to read the treble and bass clefs. You'll find out how to read notes found in musical compositions and how to notate pitches to create music.

Week Three

Wednesday - Lesson 05

For many compositions, pitches are used that do not fall within the pitch range of the musical staff. With this lesson, you'll discover how to notate these pitches through the use of ledger lines.

Friday - Lesson 06

If you've wanted to learn how to play piano, you'll love this lesson. The focus is on learning the names of the keys on the keyboard. We'll match the pitches from the staff to the keyboard, so you'll be learning to read and play at the same time. By the end, you'll be able to read and play simple songs.

Week Four

Wednesday - Lesson 07

Today, you'll learn how to build major scales. The scale is the building block for composing a piece of music. You'll find out how to construct a scale on any pitch.

Friday - Lesson 08

This lesson introduces you to the names of each member of the scale. Knowing these names will enable you to discuss the functions and roles of each pitch in any key. These concepts have roots in ancient Greece, so you'll learn a little about those who have influenced how we create music.

Week Five

Wednesday - Lesson 09

Having covered major scales, today we'll examine the names of the major keys. You'll learn how to recognize the name of a key by the key signature. You'll also find out how to recognize a scale from the name of the key.

Friday - Lesson 10

In this lesson, we'll discuss the last musical element, harmony. We'll focus on creating more than one pitch at a time—the layering of musical pitches. We'll begin by looking at two simultaneous pitches, known as intervals.

Week Six

Wednesday - Lesson 11

We'll continue to explore intervals today, learning how to invert them, which is helpful when you work with chords. You'll also discover how to build three note chords, which are called triads.

Friday - Lesson 12

In this final lesson, we'll examine some of the simple relationships between triads. You'll learn how to identify which chord should be used for harmony in simple two chord progressions.

To purchase this course, click the Enroll Now button below:

This course includes a knowledgeable and caring instructor who will guide you through your lessons, facilitate discussions, and answer your questions. The instructor for this course will be Marianne Murawski.

Marianne Murawski earned her Ph.D. in Music Theory from the University of Maryland, her M.M (master of music) in Music Theory, and her B.A. in Music. Her dissertation, Theory through World Music, focused on developing an introductory music theory course that used world music examples. She has been teaching courses in music fundamentals, music appreciation, history of rock music, and world music at several colleges and universities. She is an active member of the College Music Society, giving presentations at Conferences including an International Conference in Vienna, Austria.

To purchase this course, click the Enroll Now button below:

Requirements:

Internet access, e-mail, and the and the Microsoft Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox Web browser, and a computer equipped with speakers or headphones. This course is geared towards those who have no musical background, those who play but do not read music, or anyone who is interested in understanding the fundamentals of music.

To purchase this course, click the Enroll Now button below:

Student Reviews:

"Dr. Murawski is an excellent teacher of music! I gained greater understanding of music due to her simplicities of teaching the course. I've had other music courses but none this comprehendible."

"Enjoyed the course and presentation of material was excellent and easy to understand. Am looking for a sequel."

"Fun course. Very well put together and easy to understand with a little studying. Taxed the brain of this non-musician in places, but that is why I took the course."

"Good Class. I learned a lot in such a short time."

"Good class. I will work through the material again at a keyboard."

"Good review of the basics of music theory."

"Great course. It was very helpful and answered a lot of questions I have had for a while about music."

"Hello - wonderful course, exactly what I'd hoped to find! I have no musical experience or education, and I'm amazed at how much I've learned from this course. Everything was well explained and laid out, allowing me to work through all the materials with no assistance. Wonderful...Your setup and organization are the best, and the instructor's presentation is perfectly geared towards the absolute beginner! I am looking forward to taking another class in November, and based on my experience with this class, I have very high expectations! Thanks again!"

"Hope this instructor does another course following this one."

"I didn't think I could learn this much about this subject without live interaction, so I was pleasantly surprised by the results that I achieved through the way the information was presented."

"I enjoyed the course very much. I'm 48 years old and have recently fulfilled a lifetime desire to learn how to play the guitar. I have very little prior musical education and this course has helped greatly me towards my goal. Thank you."

"I enjoyed this course, it's excellent for busy people who love music but don't have much time."

"I enjoyed this course. The instructor is very knowledgeable, interesting and thorough."

"I found the course to be very informative and interesting. I learned a lot and I enjoyed it very much. My instructor Ms. Murawski is a talented music teacher."

"I found this a very helpful and useful class. I wish I would have taken it before I started taking piano lessons. Thank you."

"I greatly enjoyed this my first on-line course. It has filled a gap in my knowledge that I have felt a need to fill for over 40 years."

"I have always wanted to play the piano. Now I will be able to (a little).I really loved this class. Thank you."

"I have learned so much from this class. The lessons are easy to follow, productive and leave you with a sense that you know about music. I cannot thank you enough."

"I learned a lot. Thanks."

"I learned everything I wanted from this course and more. It filled in all the blanks I was struggling with, as I am the type of person that needs to know the "why" to things, or I cannot learn. I hope you will think about doing an advanced course."

"I learned what I wanted to learn and feel I can use this knowledge in my own teaching of elementary school students. Thank you."

"I'm amazed how much I learned about reading music and music theory in such a short time and with such little effort. The course is well organized and interesting. Thanks"

"I must admit that when I first read about this course, I laughed and thought there was no way that in 6 weeks I would be able to read and write music. I will now eat my words. I not only understand what I am doing when it comes to reading and writing music, but I am feeling a lot more confident when I perform. Thank you so much. This course has done so much for me and I am sure that my journey with music will now reach its full potential."

"I really appreciate the effort put into making this course understandable for a total beginner. It was so nice the way all the steps were worked out; I could actually see how we arrived at the answers. Thank you SO much!"

"I really enjoyed taking this music course. I learned a lot dealing with music basics. Really enjoyed the lesson on chords, staffs, key signature...all in all, the course was fantastic."

"I really enjoyed this class. As a musician who wasn't taught music theory when learning an instrument. Now I have a much better understanding of how music works. This was a great class!"

"I really enjoyed this class. I am a musician who wasn't taught music theory when learning an instrument and now I have a much better understanding of how music works. This was a great class!"

"I really enjoyed this course and the amount of understanding I gained from it. It was tough at times, but rewarding when I could look at a piece of music and make sense of things I never understood before. Thank you!"

"I really enjoyed this course as it helped me to update my musical knowledge and skills."

"I really enjoyed this course! I learned so much."

"I really enjoyed this course. It was fun to learn or re-learn about music!"

"I took this course because I knew basic music theory as a child, but had forgotten most of it, so it was something I felt the need to re-learn. This was an excellent course for that purpose, covering all the basics of theory in detail without becoming tedious and laborious, very good, thank you."

"I truly enjoyed this course. Thank you for having this music refresher course at such an affordable price."

"It was more than I expected. You gave me a wealth of supplementary material which I intend to use for further study. Thank you so much for this. I can now play the piano with more understanding."

"It was nice to see a different perspective to music instruction. The extra lessons were interesting too. It was nice to learn more about the composers and history of music."

"Marianne is an bright and energetic teacher. You can tell music is her passion, and we are very lucky she is sharing all her wonderful knowledge with us. It was a great class and I met some very nice people Thank you for a wonderful time!!!"

"Marianne, you are a great teacher. Having played the piano, I never understood why I used certain notes, or how harmony was defined. You opened the door to a wealth of knowledge and it has already improved my playing. I do hope you have an advanced course. Greatly appreciated this course. It was fun."

"Music Made Easy was informative, challenging, and FUN! It was exactly what I was hoping it would be - and more. The instructor's writing style and the way the course was presented step by step helped me to make sense out of music theory. I thoroughly enjoyed this course, would recommend it to others, and would like to take another online music course on the next level."

"Presentation of the course material was well organized and easy to understand. I hope to continue studying music theory as a result of this course."

"Thanks for the course. My keyboard will now get used, instead of a collector of dust. I actually know what I am doing now!"

"Thank you. A valuable start for me on my music study."

"Thank you for your careful preparation and explanation of this fine course. As I suspected, understanding music theory is easiest when being led along by a good teacher such as you; but otherwise very difficult for a novice like me. More than ever, I appreciate what it really takes to become accomplished with a musical instrument. I'll be content to continue to be a really, good listener. Thanks, again."

"Thank you- this course was very enjoyable and informative! My husband received a keyboard for Christmas and I have been playing on it quite well!"

"The class was excellent. I would have enjoyed a little more time on each topic. A subsequent or follow-up course would be interesting. Other than that, the class exceeded my expectations."

"The course was excellent and provided a lot of material. The supplementary material links were also excellent and very helpful for extra material on the subject and also more intense study."

"The way Marianne laid out this course was awesome. Her style of explaining things and guiding you along in the process of learning was absolutely perfect for me!"

"This class was a well-received refresher course for me. I finally found the logic behind the music and possibly found why I loved it so much as a child (I loved Math and she brought in the mathematical reasoning behind the lessons). Thank you for making this a very interesting and learning experience for me. I have already recommended this course to my friends."

"This class was great for a first time music reader like me. It was thorough and easy to understand. I would highly recommend it to others!"

"This course covered quite a bit of useful material in a well organized and fairly clear way. I believe that I learned a great deal from it. Thank you for providing me the opportunity to take the course online from home."

"This course is a well-organized and thorough introduction to a very complex subject. I strongly recommend it to anyone who wants to learn to read music. Thank you."

"This course opened the door to the world of music which I have longed to enter. It has made me realize that I want to study it even more to help me in expressing myself musically. Thank you to Marianne Murawski for creating this class!"

"This course was a great primer to learn music."

"This course was easy to understand and follow. I feel I have a good foundation now to continue studying music theory. I highly recommend this class for anyone playing a musical instrument who has never learned basic music theory."

"This course was super and the instructor made everything so clear and interesting."

"This is the best course of music I ever had in my all life, congratulations, and keep up the good work."

"This was a good basic course which explained the reasons behind many of the musical terms and protocol I had previously learned."

"This was a good re-fresher course for me. In the 58 years I have been involved with music I see my weaknesses are still in the same area. I enjoyed the course very much and will keep it with all of my reference materials."

"This was an awesome class! I've been a working part-time musician for many years, but never had any formal training at all. I regret not taking a class like this a long time ago, to give me a solid foundation in music. Although I already had a general understanding of some of the terms used, this class really began to unlock the "mystery" of music for me. Now it's really starting to make sense, and I want to continue what I've learned. I will check out the supplemental material provided by the instructor. Many thanks again for a great class!"

"This was an excellent course giving me information that I did not possess after years of musical experience! I enjoyed the supplementary materials cited, especially the "free" sheet music site. Thank you!"

"This was a very informative course. I learned a lot and I will continue to study the lessons and quizzes that I printed out. The supplmental material was wonderful. This course was a nice introduction to music theory. I would like to thank the instructor or teaching this course."

"This was a wonderful refresher course in music theory and I learned some new things as well. It unlocks the structure of music for you…The teacher has a gift for explaining things simply."

To purchase this course, click the Enroll Now button below: