Learn music theory

The theory a guitarist actually uses — built up one idea at a time, with interactive fretboards and diagrams so each concept clicks and sticks. Start at the top; every lesson builds on the one before it.

Pitch fundamentals

The raw material of music — notes, intervals, chords, scales and keys.

Notes — the alphabet of music

Western music is built from just twelve notes. Meet the raw material every scale and chord is made of.

Intervals — the distance between notes

An interval is the gap between two notes. Learn to measure and hear the distances that build everything else.

Chords — stacking thirds

A chord is notes stacked in thirds. See how root, third and fifth form a triad — and what a chord tone really is.

Harmony — how chords connect

Building chords is only the start. Harmony is how those chords link into progressions that feel like going somewhere.

Scales & keys — notes and home

A scale is a chosen set of notes; a key is the one they call home. See how the major scale organizes the neck.

Note names & solfège — fixed vs movable do

Do-Re-Mi can name absolute pitches or scale roles. Movable-do is why one shape works in every key.

Key signatures & the circle of fifths

Why keys carry sharps and flats, and how the circle of fifths maps every key and its closest neighbours.

The leading tone — why the 7th pulls home

The seventh scale degree sits a half-step below home and aches to resolve. This pull drives almost all harmony.

Modes — same scale, different home

Play the same seven notes but treat a different one as home, and the mood changes. That's a mode.

Harmony in practice

How chords are named, why they connect, and the progressions behind real songs.

Roman numerals — naming chords by position

Number the chords of a key I to vii and progressions become portable — the same pattern in any key.

Why I-IV-V — the three pillar chords

Three chords cover every note of the major scale and define the key. Meet the pillars of Western harmony.

Root motion — why falling fifths feel strong

The distance a chord's root moves shapes how strong the change feels. Falling fifths are the strongest of all.

Chord substitution — same function

Chords that share notes share a job. Swap one for another with the same function to recolour a progression.

The four chords that rule pop

One four-chord loop underpins a huge share of pop songs. See why I-V-vi-IV works so reliably.

Sevenths & cadences

Add a fourth note for colour and tension, and learn the cadences that make a phrase feel finished.

Chords on the guitar neck

Turn the theory into movable shapes — triads, inversions and the whole family of chords from one grip.