Theory, Creativity, Technique

[alzidaney]

Yo everyone,

Ive been a self-taught guitarist for several years. Still trying to improve myself. Reading stuff here and there. And some people say that its VERY IMPORTANT to learn theory. Others though, ONE'S CREATIVITY is the best.

as in, im referring to succeed. would u need more theory or creativity to succeed...

Anw,
i was just wondering..


Is it really important to learn theory? If so, what should be learnt?
I mean, i noe there's the gazillion scales, the fretboard and stuff, but wad specifically?


Slash relied on his creativity.

Vai relied on everyting.

 

[atee]

Theory would allow you much more familiarity with the fretboard, and would definitely help you write much better and easily.

Theory plus creativity is of course better than creativity alone!

I'm still at the scales part of theory, so can't really help you on the specifics

 

[Cheez]

It's interesting why you would put creativity and theory at 2 ends of a scale. Do many people actually think theory impinges on creativity?

To me, theory applied well breeds creativity. It doesn't limit - it actually opens up an entire new horizon into what you can actually do with music. There's a word for "creativity without theory" - I call it "haphazard".

 

[thor666]

I voted, wasn't going to reply, but heh...

imo you do need some theory to put creativity into action. For example, you have a tune in your head and you want to put it down into writing. for that you need theory to at least know a few basic chords.

So, to answer the questions:

It is good to learn theory. However, it's not essential to learn all theory to become good. Major/Minor/Blues/Pentatonic Scales, chords should at least be learnt - imo these are fundamentals.

for guitarists - technique is just as important. both Slash and Vai had great techniques in their own right.

anyway - I would have to disagree that Slash was creative - I felt Axl Rose, the main songwriter, was the source of inspiration. (I'm probably going to get flamed, but what the heck.) Slash however, was a main implementor of Axl's ideas.

Vai would definitely be creative and technical and also have a good sense of theory - he wrote most of his own songs.

 

[Mobius]

Theory put things in perspective. It guides the creative process.

 

[ShredCow]

It's interesting why you would put creativity and theory at 2 ends of a scale. Do many people actually think theory impinges on creativity?

To me, theory applied well breeds creativity. It doesn't limit - it actually opens up an entire new horizon into what you can actually do with music. There's a word for "creativity without theory" - I call it "haphazard".

TRUE.
Its not "right" to place theory and creativity on a panel for comparison. Both are different entities that will serve you well if you know how to utilise them.

 

[Kwerty]

Theory is dead.

Creativity is alive.

 

[Kole]

It's interesting why you would put creativity and theory at 2 ends of a scale. Do many people actually think theory impinges on creativity?

To me, theory applied well breeds creativity. It doesn't limit - it actually opens up an entire new horizon into what you can actually do with music. There's a word for "creativity without theory" - I call it "haphazard".

Couldn't agree more. QFT

 

[alzidaney]

Theory is dead.

Creativity is alive.

nw dats a first.. haha. may we noe y u say so? i tink i still haven got an answer to what is the kind of theory dat guitarists should be learning.. as in do we learm theory specific to our genre of play? scales? modes? *shrugs*

 

[Cheez]

Theory is dead.

Creativity is alive.

To comment like this shows the lack of knowledge of both theory and creativity...

But no matter - there's always a start for everybody.

If not for theory, all my music will really be dead. I'll be stuck in a rut and never get pass a certain point.

Let's put it another way - theory IS creativity! You don't need to be creative to know theory, but to have creativity, you must have theory (in some form). Don't have to be Grade 8, but some theory will help. But of course, more theory also means more creativity.

 

[thor666]

on the contrary, i agree with Kwerty. Theory is dead; creating and applying theory (the processes) is alive.

But hey, it's just a difference in definition. I still think likewise with the earlier few postings - theory and creativity are two distinct concepts.

 

[soft]

for those who have not gotten their driving licence, hee..hee...

well, learning how to drive is not that difficult, it is those theory stuff that will save your life.

"Do you drive on when you see a RED light?"

in order to break away from the "dead" (theory) stuff, you must know them first. if not, how to know if you are actually "creative"?

 

[Kwerty]

What I meant was, theory is dead = it will not do anything by itself. You learn scales, you play scales, no biggie.

Creativity is alive = you can use whatever you have including theory to make yourself unique and stand out.

I don't mean, theory is dead in a sense you don't need it =]


PS: I do know theory too 8)

 

[Kwerty]

Anyway to add on. I can imagine situations where you can be creative w/o theory and vice versa.

2 cents.

 

[Cheez]

OK, agree. Theory in itself is not "alive" but the application of it.

That's why it's so hard to compare theory and creativity because they are just not comparable. It's ljust ike comparing apples with oranges.

 

[SpaTanS]

Theories - what should we learn 1st ? i guess it's the chords structures, the M/m, penta scales patterns, the modes, the circle of fifth perhaps ?

i'm oso self taught ... been playing since the 70s ... (woo, ahh) but heck, i know nothing about theories, patterns, modes or COF back then ... all play by listening hard, feel, catch note for note ... and usually the pattern that i caught'wont run far ... meaning i wont be playing up and down the fretboard ... :lol:

so, yeah ... with the internet and lotsa good wedsite and advise here ... i've started learning again ... M/m scales, Penta scales, reading up on modes and COF ... :lol:

 

[mingguan]

THEORY is a tool.
CREATIVITY is how you use the tool.

 

[alzidaney]

yeah i gez kwerty is rite now. w his redefinition of theory and creativity. gez der has to be dat user of the tool to make the tool useful.. =)

anw, anione can recommend any gd sites to learn theory? =) i got a bit from guitarscalesmethod.com or something. ultimate-guitar has just a very poor form of presentation of their lessons that i cant get myself to read it for long. haha. =)

 

[detroit_red]

To reply james' comment, i can imagine this scenario

Traffic police: I need to see your license please...
Guy: Who needs a license when you have creativity?

 

[Indigo_blues]

Using the example of painting,

theory is like knowing which color goes with which color, and what kinds of colors you have to paint with.. If you have a fantastic picture in your mind(creativity) but lacking in theory, you will at best paint a crude picture. The master artist is well versed in knowing which color goes best with which color in order to paint the nicest picture.

Similarly, different chords and note combinations evoke different emotions/feelings/colors. eg. a diminished triad has an 'unsettled' feel, a major triad has a 'happy' feel, a minor has a 'sad' feel. A musician who has unlimited creativity may come up with the most fantastic melody lines but will be unable to put it together coherently in the most effective manner to evoke maximum mileage from the song if he lacks the technical and theoretical knowledge in music. :wink: