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Music Theory for Guitarists [Paperback]

Tom Serb (Author)

4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

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Product details

Paperback: 108 pages
Publisher: Note Boat Inc (May 2003)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0972472304
ISBN-13: 978-0972472302
Product Dimensions: 30 x 22.4 x 1 cm

Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,289,073 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent 8 Oct 2005

By Lee Nicholas

Format:Paperback

If you want to improve your guitar playing anything beyond just bashing out chords to your favourite songs and reading Tab then you really do need to understand some basic music theory otherwise everything new that you learn will have no real meaning if you want to apply it to anything other than the source it came from.

This book does a fantastic job of teaching theory with the guitarist in mind and covers all the essentials without getting bogged down with much of the technical stuff that goes way beyond what you really need to know.

I discovered Tom Serb about two years ago, I have read many of his articles and within my 25 years or so of playing guitar this is without doubt one of the best writers I have come across, he has a knack of being able to explain things in a very clear way that many other writers fail to do.

If you can play your common chords and feel ready to move on then this book sits right in the middle.. it doesn't teach you how to play guitar but arms you with essential knowledge that you need to make sense of everything else as you progress.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Good coverage of the basics, but... 26 May 2012

By Paul Magnussen TOP 500 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback

I thought it was quite good: it covers the basics and no more, in an easily-readable and logical manner. The language is American ("quarter note" & "measure" for British "crotchet" & "bar", etc. — even "sharped" and "flatted" for "sharpened" and "flattened").

The contents are as follows:

01. The Characteristics of Sound
02. Rhythm
03. Notes and Rests
04. Time Classification and Time Signatures
05. More Ideas in Rhythm

06. Pitch Notation
07. Clefs
08. Scales and Modes
09. Major Scales
10. Minor Scales

11. Key Signatures
12. Key Relationships
13. Chromatic and Other Scales
14. Intervals
15. Triads

16. Chord Inversions
17. Extended Chords
18. Transposition
19. Chord Symbols and Names
20. Chord Progressions and Cadences

21. Musical Terms

I did, however notice a few anomalies:

• p. 38 The sign to lower notes an octave is given (like that to raise them) as 8va; whereas in my experience it's 8vb (ottava bassa) — this is, for instance, what Finale provides.

• p. 39 The guitar is asserted to be a transposing instrument, in that its music is written in the treble clef, an octave higher than it sounds. This is certainly true of older music; but modern guitar music is often written in the octave treble clef (= vocal tenor clef), and is thus at pitch.

• p. 42 "In writing, an accidental will affect all the notes with that letter for the rest of the measure being played". Untrue! Accidentals apply only to the octave at which they appear — the same note in a different octave is (or should be) unaffected.... Read more ›

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Amazon.com: 3.5 out of 5 stars 13 reviews

38 of 41 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars great book for guitarists 31 Oct 2003

By NFShakespeare - Published on Amazon.com

Format:Paperback

"Music Theory for Guitarists" is not your every day theory book. Almost every other theory book I've seen was more suited to a keyboard than a guitar. Not so in Tom's book. He takes a fresh perspective of learning theory on the fretboard, without needing to read music. As a matter of fact the initial 50 pages of the book will teach you all you need to know about reading music so you can understand the rest of his book.

Almost every stanza of notation and scale in the book is accompanied by tab or chord charts. Scales and chord formation are covered extensively. There are also a number of cool things thrown in, like alternate scales. Every wanted to play the Pelog scale or Manaranjani? It's in there. Want to know what Morendo or Rubato means on a piece of music? It's in there.

Perhaps the front cover of the book describes it best,

"A step-by-step guide through the elements of music, with new ways to think about playing."

If you are looking for a great book for basic theory, designed for guitarists, this is it.

29 of 32 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Exactly as advertised 1 Oct 2003

By Harold McFarland - Published on Amazon.com

Format:Paperback

"Music Theory for Guitarists" is exactly as the title advertises. Tom Serb walks the reader through the basics of sound, rhythm, notes, rests, time classifications and signatures, pitch, clefs, scales and modes, chromatic scales, intervals, triads, chord inversions, extended chords, transposition, and chord progressions and cadences. Just under half of the book is dedicated to music theory itself without any particular application to guitar work. This is the section that covers things like notes, rests, and other items that apply to music in general. On page 41 he starts moving the reader into applying this knowledge to guitars and further developing your knowledge of music. For the serious guitarist who wants to know more than how to strum a handful of chords as backup, is a recommended text.

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Music Theory for Guitarists a perfect fit! 28 Feb 2006

By Brian Lynch - Published on Amazon.com

Format:Paperback

Frustrated with theory? Spending money left and right on lessons that, while teaching you to play, aren't teaching you what you need to CREATE? Want to know what the hell somebody means by a flat 3rd, diminished 7th, or "exotic scales"?

Look no further. Tom Serb's Music Theory for Guitarists is, without a doubt, the best book you can get on the market. It will set your mind on fire, bring in the building blocks you need to really MAKE music, and provide you with so many "I GET IT NOW!!!" moments that you can begin to enjoy the instrument as it was meant to be enjoyed.

However, this is not a book that guarantees faster speeds, super shredding, or that you'll be a Yngwie or Pagey when you're done. This gives you a thorough grounding in the what and how of the music theory most guitarists eschew in favor of hot licks and the ease of reading tablature.

If you're just starting guitar, don't let your playing fall into a trap by sticking to TAB - get this book and do it right!

If you're an intermediate guitarist - pick it up, you'll learn everything that you need to take your playing to the next level.

If you're an advanced guitarist - this book might not be for you, and may not go into the crazy stuff you're used to. But feel free to recommend it to any friends that aren't at your level - it is an awesome book!

If you're a guitar teacher - this is your new favorite reference. Tom doesn't use lameass nursery school songs to drill things home, he gets straight to the meat of things and explains them with relative ease, which means you can spend more time tailoring your lessons to your students' desires in playing - and avoid wanting to hang yourself over hearing "Hot Cross Buns" for the billionth time!

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