[Harp-L] Re: Why Learn Music Theory?

[Roger A Gonzales <gonz1@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Perhaps on of the reasons that more harmonica players don't take the time to learn theory or to 
learn to read music is that they do not think that it is important to their future as a musician.  
Nothing could be 
farther from  the truth.  Until one learns music theory or learns to read music, your musical 
education and abilities will be incomplete.  There simply is no getting around that fact.  Yes 
you will be able to play a 
great deal of music and perform in certain genres with no problem if you don't study theory.  
However, you will still be selling yourself short of soooo much music and knowledge.  There 
in lies the difference 
between becoming a complete musician and resigning yourself to just being a player.  I know 
that there is alot of great blues players who perhaps don't know theory as well as a classically 
trained musician, but 
they know theory more than some might think.  
For my masters degree I am doing a project on the blues scene in the San Joaquin (SJ) Valley 
post WWII which came from the blues scene in LA and SF and met in the middle through 
HWY99 which goes through 
the SJ valley.  I have had the opportunity to interview several of the grand old bluesmen that 
are fortunately still around and many of them speak about someone in their lives who taught 
them their scales and 
chords which, according to them, made a huge difference in their abilities.  It is important for 
all harmonica players to study theory even in the smallest of increments.  Just gain a little 
knowledge each day and 
it will not seem as daunting a task.

regards,
Roger Gonzales