An Understandable Guide to Music Theory: The Most Useful Aspects of Theory for Rock, Jazz, and Blues Musicians [Paperback]

Chaz Bufe (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1994

This guide explains the most useful aspects of theory in clear, nontechnical language. Areas covered include scales (major, minor, modal, synthetic), chord formation, chord progression, melody, song forms, useful devices, (ostinato, mirrors, hocket, etc.), and instrumentation. It contains over 100 musical examples.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"For rock, pop, and jazz musicians...the $9.95 Guide crams a remarkable amount of information into 74 pages."  —Guitar Player

"Extremely user-friendly without being condescending to the reader. I highly recommend it."  —Jazz Player

"It's not a textbook, but a handy reference for rock, jazz and blues musicians."  —Arizona Daily Star

About the Author

Chaz Bufe is an accomplished guitarist, has performed for many years in blues and jazz groups, and holds a degree in music theory and composition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 74 pages
• Publisher: See Sharp Press; 3 Sub edition (January 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1884365000
• ISBN-13: 978-1884365003
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #821,965 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #63 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Entertainment > Music > Reference > General
  • #66 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Entertainment > Music > Instruments & Performers > Voice

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Add the reviews below together and divide by two., February 25, 2000

By 

Ronny Carter (Pittsburgh) - See all my reviews

This review is from: An Understandable Guide to Music Theory: The Most Useful Aspects of Theory for Rock, Jazz, and Blues Musicians (Paperback)

This is a very small, short gloss. Quite a few topics in music theory are briefly touched on, a significant number fairly esoteric, especially given that it assumes (sort of) that the reader knows next to nothing about music. It might be worthwhile as a sort of overview, but it occurs to me that the innocent novice might come away with a rather distorted idea of music theory--maybe not. (Click on the author's name, and see what other disparate titles he has published. I wonder how much this book really cares about music.) On the other hand, it may be just what you're looking for, just what you need.

For some reason this is being compared below to a different sort of book altogether, essentially a jazz and rock technique book. I happen to be familiar with it too, and I wouldn't suggest it (primarily, at least) as an alternative to the book I'm reviewing. On the other hand, that other book doesn't just "list scales": it shows you right hand and left hand fingerings in every key (the fingerings depend on the key, you know) for conventional pentatonic scales, as well as for pentatonic scales you haven't heard of before and says how all these scales mesh together. In addition to the "theory" section at the beginning--which, incidentally, can be understood by pretty much everyone with enough technique to attempt the scales--it shows as it goes along how you might put to use each kind of pentatonic scale. In so doing, it demonstrates briefly and concisely the essential tonal material of the blues--what I suspect someone below is getting at--but this is not its main intent.

In any case, as possible alternatives to this book (if one is desired), that is, to AN UNDERSTANDABLE GUIDE TO MUSIC THEORY...etc., I suggest THE ABC OF MUSIC by Imogen Holst (isn't it silly we that we can't post italics?) for beginners and TWENTIETH CENTURY COMPOSITION by Leon Dallin for intermediate "students". Just a couple of ideas.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars not recommended, April 12, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: An Understandable Guide to Music Theory: The Most Useful Aspects of Theory for Rock, Jazz, and Blues Musicians (Paperback)

Hmm....The most useful aspects of theory for blues musicians include pointillism and hocket and tone color melody? I doubt it. (This is understatement.) If the author has tried to avoid technical language except where absolutely necessary, why does he pepper his chapter headings with such expressions as "ternary form" (known to pop musicians as "ABA form"), and "ostinato" (known to jazz and rock musicians as "riffing)? I don't much care for the premise--if you really want to learn theory it seems to me, you should study theory--but this book is not very true to its premise. It prefers to try to impress us by throwing around irrelevant terms (many of which have only to do with twelve-tone music, a kind of music universally detested by audiences and universally ignored by pop musicians of all stripes). Well, at least a few useful aspects of theory for rock, jazz, and blues musicians are to be found here; other useful aspects of theory for rock, jazz, and blues musicians are to be found in Jeff Burns's PENTATONIC SCALES FOR THE JAZZ-ROCK KEYBOARDIST.

Recommended: PENTATONIC SCALES FOR THE JAZZ-ROCK KEYBOARDIST by Jeff Burns.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars thumbs down, April 18, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: An Understandable Guide to Music Theory: The Most Useful Aspects of Theory for Rock, Jazz, and Blues Musicians (Paperback)

I've docked this book a star for its awkward, unprofessional prose and another star for its frequent mangling of musical matter. For that matter, it doesn't seem to know who or what it's for. Its tone is patronizing. It contains no original thought or substance. If you are content with abbreviated, non-contextual (and therefore, in my opinion, virtually meaningless) explanations, you'll be happier with a pocket music dictionary Prefer music books written--with the television set off--by practicing musicians.

(By the way, it appears that this book has not been edited. Among its typographical errors appears this curiosity: "quartal" is misspelled as "cuartal" throughout. Hmm...well, "cuartel"--with an "e"--is Spanish for "quarter"....)