Songwriting: Learning to Write Sheet Music (for Beginners) - Your Music on Paper
In this 1-on-1 introductory class, students will learn the basics of writing sheet music, covering music notation, scales, chords, time signatures, and key signatures. They'll start writing simple music compositions and create sheet music.
What's included
Meets on Demand
schedule meetings as needed30 mins
per sessionTeacher support
Homework
1-2 hours per week. Learners will be asked to continue working on their music compositions between lessons, developing their songs further so we can discuss them the following week during our lesson. This way, we can address any questions, make any suggested changes or improvements, correct any music theory or notation, and format the music score, creating a professional-quality, readable score for others who wish to perform it.Class Experience
US Grade 9 - 12
Beginner - Advanced Level
What will be taught? Students will learn the basics of writing sheet music and cover music theory, such as notation, scales, chords, time signatures, and key signatures. They will also learn how to develop their musical ideas and concepts and how to notate their compositions to create professional-grade printable sheet music. What topics will you cover? This 1-on-1 introduction to sheet music writing is highly customizable: We will learn 1. The basics of songwriting 2. Sheet music creation 3. Basic music theory, such as note and rest durations and much more based on the students interest 4. Learn major and minor scales, chords 5. Learn time signatures and key signatures as they directly relate to the music they want to compose and notate as the student creates their own professional quality sheet music. These lessons are for a wide range of students, from beginners who have never written or read music before to advanced techniques for those who are more experienced and want more advanced theory and composition techniques, depending on the student's goals. The idea is for the student to have fun exploring and creating their own compositions and sheet music at their own skill level, with their own interests in mind, while building on their creative music skills. Please message me with any questions so I can better meet your needs. How is your class structured? As a one-on-one tutoring class, these lessons directly address the student's skill level. It focuses on their needs and interests regarding what type of music they would eventually like to compose and notate, allowing them to prepare professional-quality sheet music that interests them. Students range from beginners who have never read or written music to more advanced students interested in learning more advanced techniques. This class is not limited to notating piano music, so if you play another instrument, contact me before enrolling so we can ensure we are using the right music notation software for writing music for your instrument. If you have any questions, please message me, I'm more than happy to answer any questions you may have about this class. How will you teach, and what's your teaching style? I like tutoring students individually in a relaxed and fun manner so that we can have fun directly addressing their interests, needs, and skill levels. This allows us to explore their interests, making the learning environment highly customizable to each student. These lessons aim to provide a basic foundation of music theory and foster an educational experience that inspires music creation and exploration. Learners advance and gain experience with each new composition we complete. The student continues to gain that experience until they feel they have learned and explored all the areas they want to explore. Many students continue on with me to study piano, advanced theory, composition, or orchestration, or prepare for the practical piano or theory exams of The Royal Conservatory of Music. How much will learners get to interact with you? Since the class is a 1-on-1 ongoing tutoring, students will have my complete attention during the lesson. I encourage students to approach me with questions between lessons to ensure they don't lose momentum. I love seeing students succeed in reaching their goals.
Learning Goals
1. Learning the notes of the staves
2. Note and rest durations
3. Major and minor scales
4. Chord structure and creating harmony
5. Rhythm notation
6. Key signatures
7. Time signatures
8. Melodic and harmonic structure
9. Additional concepts are covered based on the student's interests and the complexity of the music they wish to compose. The music theory level advances according to the student's experience and desire to challenge themselves. This class is designed with the student's experience in mind, from students who have never read or written music before and are interested in this topic for fun to students who are more advanced performers, players, and songwriters looking to further their compositional skills and developing the skills needed to create professional looking and printable sheet music.
Other Details
Parental Guidance
This class will use the music notation program Noteflight. This program allows students and I to share music files back and forth for correction, suggestions, and annotation. Students must sign up for a free Noteflight account. Students who want additional notation features can sign up for the paid version, which is approximately $49.oo USD a year. A subscription is not required to enroll in this course.
Depending on the type of music the student wishes to compose and notate, having a free SoundTrap account and a keyboard controller for playing and recording their music may be a handy feature. However, it is not necessary for this course. If you feel having this additional software would be of any value to lessons, it is best to message me first with any questions.
All of this will be discussed during the student's first lesson as we find out more about what direction the student wishes to take in learning to notate their music and prepare it for printing as sheet music. If you have any questions, please message me, and I'll happily answer them.
Pre-Requisites
There are no prerequisits for this course, anyone who is interested in writing their own music is welcome.
External Resources
In addition to the Outschool classroom, this class uses:
Joined November, 2023
Teacher expertise and credentials
I'm Trevor, a full-time professional, Royal Conservatory of Music certified piano and theory teacher with over 25 years of experience teaching adults and children ages seven and up. I studied classical piano and theory with The Royal Conservatory of Music, Orchestration for Film and Television, and Music Production through Berklee College of Music in Boston. I'm a member of the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS), The Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN), and the Canadian League of Composers (CLC). I teach and prepare students for the practical piano and theory exams of The Royal Conservatory of Music. As a music educator, I've been helping students learn composition and orchestration, introducing them to music production, and helping them set up their own home studios as part of my professional career of over 25 years. In my opinion, there is no better job.Reviews
Live 1-on-1 Lessons
$24
per sessionMeets on demand
30 min
Live video meetings
Ages: 14-18
