Learning theory in time for college registration is 8 weeks enough? help please

[peaveyuser]

Hey well I got about 8 weeks to meet the requirements to get into a music program in college the requirements don't look that hard but still I'd like to make sure that I can pull this off. It's not my physical ability and skill I'm worrying about it's the theory and knowledge I'm worrying about.

So far the requirements for Electric bass are

-Major Scales (one octave)
-Minor Scales (one scale), harmonic, Melodic or natural
-Arpeggios major, minor (one octave)

Two pieces of your choice: Classical, jazz, rock, blues etc.. One piece must be played from a score

-Simple sight reading in open or first position (quarter notes and eighth notes)

Ear training test (I don't have to get 100%, 90% and over and I will get to take an advanced ear training test)

1. identifying major and minor, specifying the form of minor as natural, harmonic or melodic

2. Scale Degrees: A major scale will be played you will have to identify a series of 5 notes from that scale, played in any order

3. Melodies: indicate if melodies are ascending or descending, moving by steps, moving by leaps

4. Intervals: Identify the size and quality of intervals

5. Chords: a)Identify the quality, b) identify the position, c) Specify where you hear the root of the chord

6. Chord Progressions:
a) A series of 5 chords will be played. Identify the lower note of each chord in scale degrees.

b) Identify each chord as: I (tonic) or V (dominant)


7. a) A short melody will be played. You will have to specify whether it contains 2, 3 or 4 beats per bar. (The first beat of the bar will be emphasized)

b) a melody will be played twice: The first time once through, the second time the melody will stop. You will have to indicate in which bar and on which beat the melody will be interrupted.

c) You will have to write the rhythm of a 2 bar melody

Theory Placement Test

1. write the required scale, ascending and descending through one octave using accidentals as necessary.

2. Write the key signature of following keys:.........

3. Write the required interval above the given note

4. Identify the quality (major, minor. diminished or augmented) of the following triads and state their position ( root position or second inversion)

5. Complete each bar with appropriate rests

6. Identify the key and time signature of the following:......



damn I shoulda stayed in the music program at school, this looks like a lot of work and i don't want to end up working so hard for nothing.

I already got a teacher and know one solo i'll play. I also know the standard Major and Minor scales & arpeggios.



Do you think 8 weeks is enough to learn this? I'll be studying at least an hour a day ( hey I got school too that I have to work on).

so if any of you tbers have some useful tips or advice, any sites where I can learn some of this stuff, how to manage my time, what I should get done first etc...... That would be really helpful.


thankls for reading.

[AlphaMale]

I think so. That stuff seems simple.

almost all of that is taught at musictheory.net

[DocBop]

As the old saying goes..... The task increase with the time alloted.

In other word if one college is on the semester system and another on the quarter system teaching the same class in half the time. People get the job done in the matter of time they are given. So yes you can do it and will need to be focused on the target for the next eight weeks. I would say you need to find more time to study. Figure out stuff you can study without your instrument and carry it with you all the time, every space moment is a chance to study. Use the bass in your head to work on things, to the brain its no different than the real thing. Break things up in to smaller pieces to study. Remember to learn a lot of information fast, learn a little information slowly, you won't be backsliding that way. Keep reminding yourself its going to be eight weeks of hard work and after that you will be able to back off intensity.

Last another saying from Jim Stinnett at Berklee....

If you think you can or if you think you can't, you're right.

[jazzbo]

You can definitely do this, you can do anything that you set your mind to. Also, I want to dispel the notion that if you don't get in, you're doing this for nothing. Whatever you learn are valuable skills that will serve you in the future as a musician.

Decide how badly you want this? Is one hour a day enough. I know that your life is busy, but you need to decide how badly you want this. I guarantee you, whatyou put into this, you will get out. So, sometimes it will serve you well to take more time. What about one hour M-F, and 4 hours on Sat, and Sun off to relax and enjoy yourself? Immerse yourself. (Man, I'm in a PhD program right now, and I read about 1000 pages a week, plus a 20 hour per week internship, plus fulltime classes, plus 20 hours a week of work to pay the bills, plus I try to have a relationship and maintain my friendships and social life, it's about making small sacrifices, [e.g. I don't have cable TV and I don't get to practice as much as I used to and can't play in a band right now], so of course if you push yourself you can do it). Also, you could set this schedule of, let's even bump it up to 1.5 hours a day M-F, 4 hours Sat w/ Sun off, and then you set two dates, one in 4 weeks and the other one week before the test, of 10 hour practice woodshedding days. Marathon sessions where you bunker down and synthesize what you're learning. None of this may be necessary for you, I'm only talking about different ways of approaching large tasks.

Personally, organization works for me. Breaking tasks down into smaller, more manageable tasks is often helpful. (Also, you've got a teacher, and that's a HUGE help and advantage). So, for me, I would probably start a journal, saying, okay, I need to do tasks 1-12, and break down each task into things that you can work on. Do you need to spend time around a piano to work on chords and ear training? Okay, find a piano and shed. Do you need to read some theory books? Okay, find your books and read them on the bus, at the dentist's office, instead of watching Everybody Loves Raymond, etc. If this is important to you, and you really want it, absolutely you can do what you're talking about in 8 weeks. It may require some shedding though, and it may require some little sacrifices. But, if you work hard and smart, I promise you, I absolutely guarantee you, that it will be worth it, regardless of whether or not you get into the program, (which I would strongly guess that you would).

Good luck.

[Hawaii Islander]

Its about one semesters worth of work in an introductory music theory course at most colleges. I just finished a course that covered everything you listed. The same course could be taught or learned in about 6 weeks or so, if studied at an accelerated pace. You would have to put at least a few hours a day, five days a week, to get all that material covered well enough for their requirements. Thats assuming no prior music theory experience. I take it that you have some background already, so you should be able to get everything down well enough in that time. My suggestion is to make time every day to work at it. Good luck!

[peaveyuser]

Yes this is very important to me!!!! I am willing to work my @$$ off because I love music and want to be a good musician that can play in plenty of situations. I'm not limiting myself to only this though (of course not that would be plain nuts) but I much rather be going to college in music and taking my gig bag on the train to school then take a briefcase to social sciences. I don't like HS I can't stand a lot of things about it, I want College to be something I enjoy doing and something I'm truly passionate about (even though I know that music isn't an easy course).

Thanks for the helpful and motivational words this is what I like about TB everybody is helpful thank you, hopefully I can pull this off! First lesson is next week (hey we had holidays) I have 45 minute classes i'll see if I can get extra lessons so I can go in more than once a week. I'll also see if one of the teachers at the school music program can give me some worksheets or advice to help me through this.

[Seussbass]

You could definitely get this down if you applied yourself.

Like everyone else has said, you could practice some of this stuff on the bus or whatever. I've found that a lot of the stuff that i've learnt, i've learnt without even using a bass. A lot of theory is just getting your head around it and understanding the concept that's in front of you. Once you've got it in your head you can apply it later.

Things like ear training are going to take a lot of actual practice, but this is all simple stuff so long as you stick with it! Good luck man.

[EADG mx]

I'd be more worried about keeping up with the classes once you do get in

getting accepted is the easy part imo

[PocketGroove82]

Let me give you some advice, as a guy who went to music college totally self taught, up until 6 months of heading there.

Sure, you can cram for the entrance audition and learn your one octave scales in 2 months.
Sure, you can get into the program, but you are going to be fighting to keep your head above the water, and you may well drowned and waste a lot of cash in the process.

My advice is go for it, but keep in mind that you are 16 and before you are really headed for music as a degree/direction in college, all that stuff they are asking should be second nature for you. More important than studying in a summer program is finding a qualified teacher who is going to prepare you, in the years to come, to succeed when you actually hit college and purse music.

Cram for your audition, but really retain all that knowledge if you are serious...Really learn what you are playing.

Nice Videos, but keep in mind that being able to play some tunes and having technique means nothing in college if you can't read music, chord changes, and talk the talk.


..if only someone had told me this stuff!

[Hawaii Islander]

Hey Peaveyuser,

You might want to update your profile. You've been sixteen for almost 2 years.

Good Luck with college!

[peaveyuser]

Originally Posted by Hawaii Islander

Hey Peaveyuser,

You might want to update your profile. You've been sixteen for almost 2 years.

Good Luck with college!

I've only been here for a year and when I joined it said 15


PocketGroove great advice but after the audition I don't go straight to college, I still have some HS left and the college semester should start in September. So I will continue lessons and even get a more 2nd nature knowledge & feel for theory, by the time September hits I think i'll have some good experience. So my technique cram for audition, get to know the stuff, then get in a lot more detail after audition and before college semester.

Thanks for the compliment on the videos too I've come a long way this past year.

[Hawaii Islander]

Oops! I made you old before your time!

[CamMcIntyre]

Learn where your strengths are.

I'm in the middle of my 3rd year of music school. I have struggled since day 1 w/the aural skills portion of the curriculum while the written part has come easily. So-for me, i have to study aural far more than written.

This stuff will not be a waste unless if you decide to quit music all together-even then you will have learned some hip stuff. All of that stuff will help your playing.

To quiz yourself on the aural stuff-check out www.musictheory.net i use that site as a self quiz every few weeks. The interval trainer and chord ID trainers are definitely worth the time.

I agree with Jazzbo-for me, it works best to break stuff down into chunks. I rarely do a marathon practice session. My longest sessions are around 4hours. Normally-i do several 30-45min sessions a day.

take it easy and the work will be worth it. 3 years in [and bout a year behind]-i'm able to do far more than i ever imagined. Now-i'm working to learn even more.

[Mark Wilson]

You're French?!

Where are you applying?

[Chad.mundt]

Originally Posted by peaveyuser

Yes this is very important to me!!!! I am willing to work my @$$ off because I love music and want to be a good musician that can play in plenty of situations. I'm not limiting myself to only this though (of course not that would be plain nuts) but I much rather be going to college in music and taking my gig bag on the train to school then take a briefcase to social sciences. I don't like HS I can't stand a lot of things about it, I want College to be something I enjoy doing and something I'm truly passionate about (even though I know that music isn't an easy course).

Thanks for the helpful and motivational words this is what I like about TB everybody is helpful thank you, hopefully I can pull this off! First lesson is next week (hey we had holidays) I have 45 minute classes i'll see if I can get extra lessons so I can go in more than once a week. I'll also see if one of the teachers at the school music program can give me some worksheets or advice to help me through this.

Hey, man. Yeah, there are a bunch of cats with chops and whatever but no theory chops. A lot of people find it really hard (I'm personally the other way around: theory was easy, technique took effort).

If I were you, I'd start to sing. I don't mean sing what you've been playing on the bass (although that is important, too). With NO instrument, try to sing a major scale, one step at a time. When you can do that with no trouble, try to do a natural minor scale.

After you can do all that, make sure you understand what each of the modes are, scale tone wise (ie. Dorian is a natural minor scale with a natural 6th). If you don't know for sure what they are, ask your teacher or PM me.

Can you sing your basic arpeggios? Major, Minor, Major 7th, Minor 7th, Dom 7th? Diminished, Augmented, MinorMaj7th, whatever, don't worry about those yet. You can study that in school.

Try to sing basic nursery rhymes and famous melodies by scale degree. For example - Twinkle, Twinkle: 1, 1, 5, 5, 6, 6, 5... Joy to the World: 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1...5, 6, 6, 7, 7, 8... You can do this whenever you hear a melody on the TV or the radio. I guarantee that this will do more for your playing than practicing your Vic Wooten double thump.

Basically, I'm saying that the majority of your study should be AWAY from your instrument. Your bass is only a medium for your creativity. If you understand what you want to play before you play it, you'll play it correctly.

[Chad.mundt]

Originally Posted by CamMcIntyre

Learn where your strengths are.

I'm in the middle of my 3rd year of music school. I have struggled since day 1 w/the aural skills portion of the curriculum while the written part has come easily. So-for me, i have to study aural far more than written.

This stuff will not be a waste unless if you decide to quit music all together-even then you will have learned some hip stuff. All of that stuff will help your playing.

To quiz yourself on the aural stuff-check out www.musictheory.net i use that site as a self quiz every few weeks. The interval trainer and chord ID trainers are definitely worth the time.

I agree with Jazzbo-for me, it works best to break stuff down into chunks. I rarely do a marathon practice session. My longest sessions are around 4hours. Normally-i do several 30-45min sessions a day.

take it easy and the work will be worth it. 3 years in [and bout a year behind]-i'm able to do far more than i ever imagined. Now-i'm working to learn even more.

+2! Absolutely right. The players that get something from school are the one who learn how to practice effectively, and this is one of the most important points to learn. Don't measure your practice sessions in hours. Measure them in what you get out of it.

[Stumpy]

8 weeks should be fine. You will probably pass.

Learn your Circle of fifths, and practice the daylights out of your ear training stuff.

[peaveyuser]

Originally Posted by Mark Wilson

You're French?!

Where are you applying?

no I'm not French I'm really from Toronto (well I can't use that excuse anymore I moved here when i was 11 for gods sake) and francais c'est un difficile subjet avec moi.

Vanier college, ever hear of it?


Thanks a lot this advice is helping.

[Freddels]

Originally Posted by peaveyuser

I'll be studying at least an hour a day

This is the one problem that you may have. I think it might take more than one hour a day. I know you wrote "at least" an hour but I would think it might take considerably more time.

Try writing stuff on flash cards (3x5 index cards) to keep with you all the time so that you can squeeze in a few minutes here and there during the day.

Good luck.

[peaveyuser]

Originally Posted by Freddels

This is the one problem that you may have. I think it might take more than one hour a day. I know you wrote "at least" an hour but I would think it might take considerably more time.

Try writing stuff on flash cards (3x5 index cards) to keep with you all the time so that you can squeeze in a few minutes here and there during the day.

Good luck.

I said at least because of well school work too. i mean I have exams coming up and have to keep up with my French and math. No matter how important music is these come first, why you might ask? Simply put if my marks aren't good I can't get in anyways, to music or my second choice. Also some days I'll have Rugby practise. I'll for sure try to make up for it and after all it's quality not quantity right?