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Can I get direct feedback on my music?
We have community forums where you can post your compositions and get feedback.
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Do I need prior composition experience?
No. You must be able to read music notation in treble and bass clef. Everything else is explained in the course.
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Will it work for my style or genre of music?
Yes. When you learn the technique, we focus on classical style, but almost every concept taught in the course can be, with a little imagination, used in just about any genre.
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Does it work on mobile?
Yes. At least it should be... if something isn't working let me know.
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Is there a certificate at the end?
Yes. There is a shareable certificate at the end of the course.
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What payment methods do you accept?
PayPal, and Stripe. I accept all major credit and debit cards.
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Do I need a membership if I purchase the course?
No. Purchasing the courses will give you access for life. The membership allows access to the courses on a month to month basis, but you lose access after you cancel (once your month runs out).
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What’s the difference between the free course and the paid Fundamentals course?
The full course goes beyond learning basic vocabulary and shows you a complete process for composing. You'll gain the vocabulary and know exactly how to use it.
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FAQs
Frequently Asked Questions
Practice Everything You Learn
With a comprehensive 96 page workbook
A Deeper Look at the Syllabus
Each module of the course has a clear goal for you as a composer.
The course is structured in a logical, step by step way to introduce new ideas and techniques, and then reinforce them along the way. Many students have told me over the years that it really help to clear up confusing aspects of theory they learned in school and make them practical.
Create a Basic Melody: a simple way to start composing right now.
Make More of Your Melody: With just three techniques, chord tones, passing tones, and neighbor tones, you can create a huge variety of melodies, with very little mental effort.
Master the Essentials of Harmony: Understand the basics of harmony quickly, so you can move onto what you really want to know - how to create chord progressions.
C Major and Fundamental Chord Progressions: Begin the process of integrating critical progressions, scales, and patterns into your playing and composing.
How Harmony Works: We'll look at functional harmony in depth, and then we’ll use a very handy chart to start creating functional chord progressions.
Harmony and the Real Power of Limitations: A practical section for you to start gaining more compositional vocabulary.
Understanding Form: Open up a whole new world of possibility in your compositions. Form is more than just how a piece is put together - it is really about how music interacts with time.
Compose a Sentence: Create forward momentum with one of the best ways to organize your themes.
Generating and Refining Basic Ideas: Writing great themes starts with being able to generate and refine two bar basic ideas.
Chord Progressions, Minor Keys, and Simple Modulation: This section should unravel a lot of the mysteries of creating logical sounding chord progressions, adding simple chromaticism (applied dominants), and modulating to closely related keys. First, we will look at functional harmony in depth, and then we’ll use a very handy chart to start creating functional chord progressions. From there, we move onto minor keys. Once we’ve covered both major and minor, we are ready to modulate.
Master Melodic Composition: Learn how to use scale lines, chord lines, and rhythm together as one coherent whole.
Understand Voice Leading and Harmonization: We'll look at critical aspects of voice leading and harmony, such as range, doubling, completeness, spacing, and melodic motion. We'll also look at how to harmonize a melody.
Compose a Period: The period has a balanced, complete feel, and is often used in themes of all types.
Embellish Your Melody: Melodic embellishment is one of the most powerful ways to enhance and vary your melody.
Composing a Beginning, Middle, and End: Small Ternary Form: This form will be the basis for our capstone project, the bagatelles. Small ternary form is a very common theme type, and is somewhat the forerunner to the more modern songwriting conventions of the AABA song form.
Adding Accompaniment: We'll look at how accompaniment works, and how you can turn any chord progression into a great sounding accompaniment.
Capstone Project: A Few Bagatelles: In the capstone project, you have more freedom than you have had in previous exercises. This is where you spread your wings and fly.
iklimbade
Amazing!
It was very helpful!!! Thank you Jon!
fabrizio
FUNDAMENTALS OF MUSIC COMP
very useful and explained very clearly!
Michael
Such a great course ...
Precise exposition of 'musical expectations' and how to apply them. The Fundamentals of Musical Composition has opened a world of understanding and possibility for me. Thank you Jon.
Idris
The fundamentals of music theory and composition
Great course, a bridge between music theory and music composition. Thank you Jon! I'm glad I found your course.
Eric
Nice
Simple but powerful.
B
Fantastic course
Thanks for the great course Jon! You clearly put a lot of effort into its design and delivery. I found it dived deep enough into the subject to provide a solid foundation, yet the pace and format kept it interesting and enjoyable. Would be great to see more from you in the future.
Chris
Fundamentals of Musical Composition
I'm really enjoying the Art Of Composing online courses! My composing is has improved so much since I started a month ago. All the lessons are presented clearly with nice musical examples! I can't wait to dive into another lesson today! Thanks Jon!
Hannah
Fantastic!
So far this is areally great course
Marshall
Fantastic
Ross
Clear and detailed approach to composing
The course was coherent and understandable. From a non-American perspective (I am a Brit) some of the language needed translating as certain terms are different to us but this was not an issue. Great course. Would love to see more for different styles (eg Jazz)
Doug
This is a Great course!
The material is both comprehensive and well explained. The instructor (Jon) has also created a very complete workbook with well thought out examples and exercises. Well done Jon. THank you
Juan
The Composition class I needed in college!
I thought I knew about composing but wow! this course really helps solidify concepts like harmony and actually use it in real-time with the concepts laid out here! It's criminal that colleges that have a music program don't have a course like this as a mandatory requirement!!!
Alex
Sad and angry at myself
Hello. The first lessons caught my total interest, with the aspect of limitations and using chord and non-chord tones. When we entered 'harmonics', I started to feel myself drifting away, because I was expecting to learn composition of popular songs, not classical, so that got me feeling a bit sad, because that's where I tought the course would be directed to. After some of the other lessons, I got angry at myself for not looking at the lessons before deciding if I should make it or not. At this moment, I'm thinking about just leaving it behind. I cannot rate the course fairly, because you took time to make it so didactic. But music theory sometimes looks like the study of wines... so much theory that, if you work hard, you will become a specialist in wines and in music, and be able to become a member of a club that can talk its language, perhaps even appreciate the beauty of music in a way that others could not do it. Well, not exactly what I was looking for, perhaps I was just looking for a way to compose beautiful popular songs, while having maybe a glass of wine. Sorry, I will leave it 5 stars because I don't want to pass the idea that it is not a great course... it's just not for me.
Zafer
Awesome
Loved every bit of it.
Jack
Fantastic!
A bit of a deep dive for me. Im looking forward to revisiting it multiple times and really implementing the techniques. I can see how this will be a real advancement forwards for me once I've digested it all properly. Thanks for crafting a wonderful course
Laurie
I want more!
I love Jon's courses because he distills his instruction down to the essentials without all of the techno-babble that is so prevalent among higher-level music educators. The only thing more that I want to know is, "When are you going to do the Counterpoint Course that you promise so many times in your blog?"
chris
Excellent
The course is very logical and well thought out. It begins at the beginning, so to speak, and is thorough and comprehensive. Most excellent for learning to compose in the classical style, which would be a good beginning point for any composing style. The course is a very useful learning tool.
Stelios
excellent down-to-earth, practical, teaching method of music composition
Excellent down-to-earth systematic method that teaches music composition. I like the author's ability to take advanced concepts of music theory and teach them in plain-English, structured, pedagogical way. Very Good Job.
Julian
Very practical introduction harmony and melody
I find Jon's explanations to be clear and backed up with demonstration. I've often heard the term "functional harmony," but I never was given an explanation of the function. The veil of harmony and form have been lifted for me and I can see and hear what is happening.
John
Great course!
This was a great course! I have played several instruments in the past, but was not aware of all that goes into the art of composing music. This course really showed me how that was done while presenting it in a way to always keep it interesting. Highly recommended.
Luke
Finally! What we all have wanted
I finally found what I have been looking for. This course is for all who want to compose, but never thought they could! Without going into confusing subjects, it teaches all the fundamentals of composing. I can't wait to finish and start composing full pieces.
Alice
Fantastic
I learned a lot in this course.
Bumble
Your approach is addicting
I just start learning composing before this course and was addicted to it, then I found your course and your approach got me even more addicted :)! School kids should have this in their classes!
Dennis
Basic Idea
Love the course. I have no problem coming up with lots of basic ideas, but the course has helped me with advancing the my ideas to a complete compositional form, evolving to a level I had not reached before.
Joseph
Brush Up For Me
The course is very good for me as a review to what I'd learned 50 years ago in school.
Jim
Great teaching!
Clear and sequential, excellent tutoring!
Kwadwo
K Frimpong
Pretty Satisfied
Judy
Fundamentals of composition
This course is most likely as good as it gets!!
Ignacio
Very usefull for any level.
It helps for any student, including advanced and beginners.
Neeraj
Best Teacher
I hope Jon makes new courses for us on Harmony and Counterpoint as promised :).
Matthew
Oustanding Teaching and Course!
I very much enjoyed this course, and I will definitely be taking more of Jon's composing courses in the future. He explains difficult concepts well and makes them easier to understand. I especially liked the applied examples from Beethoven, Mozart, and Mahler. Also, the workbook exercises help solidify the concepts without becoming tedious or boring. Overall, it was a fantastic course, and I learned a great deal about melody, harmony, and form.
Luis D
Excellent experience
I really enjoyed this course and learned a great deal. It is such a well-organized sequence of concepts, that it was easy to reinforce what I already knew and incorporate much new information in the context of my previous experience. Despite my keen interest, other obligations kept me from progressing faster. I am a civil engineer in my mid 60s. However, as an amateur musician, music has played a large role in my life. At age 12, I received guitar lessons and have played all my life. I also felt attracted to the bass guitar at some point and have kept this interest alive, as well (low frequencies really fascinate me). Jon’s course has filled many gaps in my musical knowledge. The lessons are clear, precise and easy to understand. Before I fully aware, I had incorporated many theoretical concepts in my body of knowledge. I learned key concepts that I consider invaluable, such as: the impact of the overtones series on composing and arranging, the major and minor chord progression charts, the concept of passing tones and neighbor tones, pivot chords, modulation, and ideas for embellishment. A powerful concept is that in music there are no rules, only expectations. However, I believe the concept that impacted me the most was the power of limitations. It is a mighty tool for promoting creativity. The abundance of information, tools and options can be paralyzing. The course has also motivated me to learn some piano. Musical concepts are clearly laid out on a keyboard, in comparison to stringed instruments. I have always enjoyed classical music, as well as many other genres. The Art of Composing has enabled me to understand the underlying structure of classical pieces. The likelihood with which Bach and Mozart followed notes in a melody provides a wealth of information from these Masters, that can be great sources of inspiration. Even if classical music is not exactly your area of main interest, the lessons learned in the course are universal. You can apply them to any style of music if you create and manage the expectations of the listener correctly. The Bagatelles on the final lessons, show clearly how his process works for him. I was also impressed by how a music notation software helps out in trying ideas and keeping things organized. Lastly, the Workbook for the course provides a great reference for future use. Many thanks to Jon for putting this course together and making it available to anyone who desires to learn music with deep understanding of how and why good music works. Luis Alfaro
Brice
Classy...cal
Well presented, cleary structured and fairly priced. Just what I was looking for. Thank you!
Tom
I wish that I had had this course when I started college.
Every music student should have a course like this.
Michael
Course review update
From the start of this course, I have thoroughly enjoyed working my way through the course material and revisiting some of my earlier compositions and arrangements. The modules have been of great value in motivating me to get back to composing in this latter stage of my life.
Martin
Solid Training
Thoroughly enjoying this course and getting lots of benefit from going back to the fundamentals. A brilliant course - thank you
Bernhard
Great course!
Thanks for this great course! Very well structured and so the motivation and fun never has stopped. I had to work on my piano skills so it took me longer but its a huge fun to be able to compose and play one's own music. Thanks!
Hector
great
super clear, concise and practical, the best introduction to classical music online so far!
Katie
great course
i thought the sections were relevant to composing and helped me know how to compose....the only thing i would say is maybe have a dropbox where students could submit music to be critiqued for feedback.....
BJ
Outstanding Course
I have enjoyed this course so much! I teach instrumental music at a small Christian school and have been able to make excellent use of the theory and compositional techniques for my groups. Highly recommend this course to anybody wanting to learn or brush up on technique and theory!!
Linda
Essentials of Harmony
I'm enjoying this very much. I've made music all my life (7 decades) and read music easily (as a soprano). But I'm delighted to be learning about chord progressions and how they form the foundation for composing. My keyboard skills are weak and my use of musescore is weaker, but I'm forging on. Thank you for the clear and encouraging lessons.
Alan
Melody Part 1
Excellent approach to teaching traditional classical composing. The idea of constraint and limits for creating a melody at first seems counter-intuitive. How can you be creative by thinking inside the box? However, this novel approach blends the left and right sides of the brain by providing order and rules but still allowing freedom within the constraints. Similar to giving a child a limited set of block shapes to play with instead of dumping out the entire box.
Christopher
Brilliant
This is a fantastic course, very well presented and the quality of materials is amazing. I'm looking forward to the next chapters. Thank you
Alex
Excellent!
Thank you so much Jon, this is neatly filling the gaps left from the degree course. Looking forward to more :)
Neil
The title very accurately represents what I found in the course!
I have had a few goes at composing as part of a course in performing music. Using MuseScore so I could listen to what I did was absorbing and a bit addictive. However, the end result was interesting rather than great to listen to. Now that I have a much better understanding of what goes into composition I am looking forward to revisiting some of my previous attempts. And then venturing further!
Joe
Great for Both Courses
For me it was a very good refresher course after being away from music for a good while. I would recommend this course to any level of music student; it is solid and well thought out. Jon is an excellent teacher and he has a unique ability to present the course teaching.
Till
Great Course
Fantastic course with great explanation of the topics. Would recommend this to anyone interested in the subject matter. Go for it, you can go wrong! :)
Edsel
Thank you so much!
I've been wanting to compose for a while and now I can! This course has been very helpful and informative!
Paul
Melody Part 1
Enabled me to compose my first melody using chord tones, only.
Michael
Such a great course ...
Precise exposition of 'musical expectations' and how to apply them. The Fundamentals of Musical Composition has opened a world of understanding and possibility for me. Thank you Jon.
Skevos
The title is appropriate to the subject matter
I particularly like the stress upon the importance of self-imposed limitations; and I suspect that the same principle holds true in all forms of creative work including poetry, prose writing etc and even (e.g.) painting (as in, for instance, limiting onself to a particular, restricted palette of colours).
Adrian
Major Clarifications
I am planning on using this new information in my orchestrations. The exercises lend themselves to being orchestrated and I am enjoying the tasks immensely.
Elvis
Awesome!
Very well done! Always with a focus on the essential and important from the beginning of tonality to composing a small piece!
Donna
Breakthrough! Wahoo
Okay, because I was bellyaching so much before I really owe you a huge thank-you now. Thank you for this course. I'm so glad I stayed with it. The handbell choir director accepted my piece for practice. If all goes well, we'll perform it next year. I'm a composer! Now I'm stoked to finish the remaining lessons. It was a little painful for me given I lacked a good foundation in music, but it is SO WORTH IT now! Thank you, Jon.
Ethan
Very good course
This course had made me much more confident in composing. I have much more knowledge of the fundamentals of composition. The examples are also very helpful.
Jeremy
The Fundamentals of Musical Composition
The whole course is very informative. I personally enjoyed it and learned something new.
Pamela
Gives an outline of what is in the course
It expanded my knowledge from what I already know about Composition
MR
totally diggin' it !
Hey Jon, I am really loving the fun way you have gone about constructing a course that is based on some fundamental building blocks, and incorporates useful limitations that enable anyone to start composing.
Christopher
Good information
There are very few people that present theory in this way online. Most people probably think theory is just knowing scales and circle of fifths and a lot of places online present it like that. This course presents the theory of what the musical system is and how to use it and the functions it has. People disregard theory because they think it is a bunch of rules and it will limit their creativity while this couldn't be further from the truth. The musical system which we use was designed and created by people and is a system with some technicalities and must be properly understood.
Shon
Great course!
So many courses that claim to cover musical composition are really just an introduction to some basic theory, without a thorough explanation to how pieces are constructed as wholes. The AOC course is different - it really covers the way that larger pieces are put together and given coherence, while not neglecting the elements (like melody and harmony) that make those pieces up. Highly recommended!
Tom
Widen your definition of who is interested in your course offerings
You might want to consider , in the future, to widen your audience by not assuming they want to or need to play the piano. I just finished a series of high level courses at ScoreClub which made the same assumption. As a life long amateur guitarist ( rock/blues/jazz) I didnt fit this assumption. But with determination and the use of Dorico Pro 4, I was able to do all that was required...and more. Many folks these days interested in sound design and sound track creation have sophisticated hardware and software at their fingertips, and just need a foundation of music theory and composition to attain their goal. Many have a keyboard for basic noodling, but (like me) have no interest in learning to play it. By widening your definition of who is interested in your course offerings you do these folks a service, and make more money. Just a thought. :)
Jose
Very good course. Enjoy it. It may need a bit of reorganization
I am a complete beginner, but I have really enjoyed the course. I loved the examples at the end where everything seems to fit into place. However, I think the course could be improved. Just to give some suggestions, I think the theory is well explained but it may need some reordering in order to be more logically introduced. Perhaps ideas should be clarified with more diagrams and tables. Too many words sometimes. It is difficult to follow if you do not have a theory book at hand. Master classes, as they stand, are of relatively little utility (for me at least) It is interesting that rules provided are not always followed and there is little explanation on that. I understand this is art but, on the other hand, it may be very confusing. We need to understand the rules well before breaking them, particularly if this is a class. Finally, I think it would be very useful to give indications of relatively accesible works (from classical and modern composers) where the pupils could recheck course theory and progress further.
Kyle
Beyond Worth It
I can't speak highly enough of this course. I'm a casual guitarist with no formal musical education who took it to have a better grasp of songwriting. Despite only a basic self-taught theory background, I was able to follow along immediately and improved my understanding of composition theory by leaps and bounds. The lesson are structured intelligently, and the exercises are focused yet demanding enough that you WILL improve if you simply do the work. I don't play classical music, but the compositional principles carryover easily to any kind of Western genre. I'm no longer guessing what chords or notes might work. I have a growing intuitive sense of what I'm trying to do, and it's easier to write better songs, faster. The instructor's philosophy of music education is sensible and effective. For the price of this course, the knowledge I gained was ridiculous. I searched all over the internet for a way to learn composition, and this was the best option by a long shot. As much as it's helped me, I've probably forgotten or failed to fully grasp the majority of the principles taught. This is not a knock on the course. It was taught well. I concentrated by efforts on understanding the high value basics. The only way to learn this stuff is to put it under your fingers for hours and hours. There was too much good stuff for me to nail in one pass. Even a fraction of it was enough to make me improve by leaps and bounds. I can now go back and work it through again, focusing on things I neglected the first time. There's probably a solid two years worth of work available here to someone who wants to do it right, but even a cursory pass will yield improvement. For guitarist, I found a lot of the exercises more difficult on guitar, so I got myself an electronic keyboard and learned to play basic piano. That alone was a rewarding journey. It's doable on guitar, but easier on keyboard unless you're already a really great guitarist. Once the principles are grasped, it transfers back to guitar quite readily. I used the free software Musescore to write my compositions, and recommend it to students. If you have any desire at all to learn basic Western music composition, this course is worth its weight in gold.
Maria
AMAZING!
Thanks! I really enjoyed the course, it was a great review for me and it helped a lot to answer some questions and confusions. This courses gave me motivation to composed again. I lost the interest long time ago because of the teachers I was dealing with. Thanks again!
Vincent
Good!
This course helped me to have a more concise framework to start writing ideas in
Michael
Great clarity and thoroughness
Jon, taking us through the principles, shows the process by composing right in front of us. This gives a great snapshot of the work: getting an idea, tweaking it, harmonising it, smoothing it in real time.
Aaron
Fundamentals of Musical Composition
Very good information...the course provides a base to begin composing simple melodies.