Tonic Triads
What does the term “tonic triad” mean? The tonic is the first (and last) note in a scale. “Triad” means “chord built with thirds”. A “tonic triad” is a music …
Interval Numbers
Intervals An interval is the distance between two notes, measured as a number. In Grade One Music Theory (ABRSM and Trinity), sometimes you have to measure given intervals, and sometimes …
Key Signatures
Key When we write music which mostly uses notes from the scale of C major and sounds good finished with a C, we say that the music is “in the …
Major Scales and Scale Degrees
The C Major Scale Listen to this series of eight notes: This is a scale of C major. (A “scale” is any defined series of musical notes.) In the C major scale, …
Tones and Semitones
Semitones (Half Steps) A semitone (or “half step” in the USA) is the smallest distance between two different notes. Let’s use the piano keyboard to look at some examples of …
Simple Time Signatures
Time Signatures A time signature is a symbol which we write at the beginning of a piece of music to show how many beats there are in one bar. Time …
Time Names of Rests
Rest Shapes In music theory, rests are symbols which tell you to stop playing, and how long to stop for. Rests come in different shapes depending on how long they …
Time Names of Notes
This page uses UK note names. USA note names are shown in brackets. Note Shapes To show how long notes should be held for, we draw them with different shapes. …
Trinity Grade 1 Music Theory
Welcome to the Trinity Grade 1 Music Theory start page! If you (or your child/pupil) are just starting out on your music theory journey, this is the right place to …