StretchLearn Course

Finally Understand How Music Actually Works

Notation, intervals, scales and keys, chords and harmony, rhythm, and ear training, taught from first principles so it works on any instrument.

Preview Curriculum Back to Catalog

Beginner9 hr 30 minSelf PacedRegistered

Course Overview

What this course is designed to develop

Most musicians can play but cannot explain why a chord change pulls the way it does, how to transpose a song into a singable key, or what name to give the notes under their fingers. This course fixes that by building theory from the ground up: you start with the staff, the 12 pitches, and the formula for every interval, then construct major and minor scales, the circle of fifths, triads and seventh chords, and the functional roles (tonic, subdominant, dominant) that drive progressions in pop, jazz, classical, and film. You also master rhythm and meter and build a daily ear-training habit using named tools, so theory becomes something you can hear and use, not just diagram.

Learning Outcomes

What the learner should be able to understand, build, or execute.

Read pitch and rhythm in treble and bass clef, including key signatures and accidentals

Construct any interval, scale, and key signature using semitone formulas and the circle of fifths

Build and identify major, minor, diminished, and augmented triads and seventh chords

Analyze chord progressions by Roman numeral and explain tonic, subdominant, and dominant function

Notate and count rhythm accurately in simple and compound meters

Train your ear to recognize intervals, chord qualities, and progressions using a daily practice routine

Curriculum Preview

Inside the curriculum: a structured path from fundamentals to execution.

Preview the course structure, see how the modules build on one another, and understand the path this program is designed to take you through.

Module 1

Module 1: Reading Music: Notation, Pitch, and the 12 Notes

Music notation is a precise map of pitch and time. This module teaches you to read the staff in both common clefs, name every pitch including sharps and flats, and understand the 12-note chromatic system that everything else is built on.

3 lessons

The Staff, Clefs, and Note NamesContent · 45 min

Preview Enabled

The 12 Notes, Sharps, Flats, and the KeyboardContent · 45 min

LMS Access

Key Signatures and How to Read ThemContent · 45 min

LMS Access

Module 2

Module 2: Intervals, Scales, and Keys

Intervals are the raw material of all melody and harmony. This module teaches you to measure any interval, build major and minor scales from their step patterns, and navigate all keys using the circle of fifths.

3 lessons

Intervals: Measuring the Distance Between NotesContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Major and Minor ScalesContent · 50 min

LMS Access

The Circle of Fifths and TranspositionContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Module 3

Module 3: Chords and Functional Harmony

Harmony is how notes sound together and move over time. This module builds triads and seventh chords from intervals, assigns Roman numerals, and explains the tonic, subdominant, and dominant functions that drive real progressions.

3 lessons

Building Triads and Seventh ChordsContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Diatonic Chords and Roman Numeral AnalysisContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Functional Harmony: Why Progressions WorkContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Module 4

Module 4: Rhythm, Meter, and Ear Training

Theory you can hear and time. This module teaches note durations, simple and compound meter, and a structured daily ear-training routine that ties pitch, harmony, and rhythm together.

3 lessons

Note Values, Rests, and CountingContent · 45 min

LMS Access

Time Signatures and MeterContent · 45 min

LMS Access

Ear Training: Hearing What You Now UnderstandContent · 45 min

LMS Access

Built for Application

A complete learning path, not a one-off inspiration hit.

This program is designed around progression: focused lessons, structured modules, applied resources, assessments, and a course rhythm that turns information into usable capability.

music notationintervalsscales and keyschords and triadsfunctional harmonycircle of fifthsrhythm and meterear training