How do I know this? Because I found these super cool tree ornaments when I woke up this morning. Twelve Color Music notes. Sweet!

Let’s make our own. They’re easy!

Topic:

Make your own tree ornaments.

Supplies:

• 12 sheets of colored paper — one for each color of the chromatic scale
• square and circle templates open on your computer
• scissors
• glue
• tape
• string or fishing line
• printer

Activity:

1. Split your paper into two piles — one that will become circles, one that will become squares. Print the shapes.

2. Cut out all the shapes. Cut along each shape’s outer edge.

3. We will work on the circles first, so set the squares aside. On your first circle ornament, grab the rectangular piece and dab a little glue on one end.

Now, touch the other end to the glue end, so it makes a loop.

4. Grab a green circle and squeeze a line of glue down the middle, then stick the loop to the top.

5. Dab a little glue to the loop, and then attach a circle to the top. So the loop should be sandwiched between two circles that are lined up to each other perfectly.

6. On the top circle, squeeze a line of glue right down the center like you did before, and stick another circle on top.

Repeat this process until you have three circles on either side of the loop. All the circles should be glued down the middle.

Do this for all of the circle ornaments. Set them all aside to dry. Now we’ll make the square ornaments!

7. First, we will fold the edges. In the end, we want the black lines to be hidden inside the box, but we also want to use the black lines to help show us where to fold.

To start, fold along each line so that the line is facing out.

Then, go back through and on each crease, fold it the other way, so that the black line is hidden inside.

8. Next, we will attach the string. Squeeze a blob of glue onto the middle of the center square. (It is the square that has a square on each of its four sides.)

Now, lay the string over the glue, then smash the circle on top.

9. Time to glue all the flaps down! We want to tuck the flaps in, so put the glue on the outside of each flap. It is best to start at one end and work your way to the other end.

Press the flap to the inside of the box.

10. When you just have the lid left, skip the glue. Instead, tuck the flaps in, then tape the edges closed.

Now finish the rest of the square ornaments. Once they are all done, let’s get back to the circles and finish them. They should be dry by now.

11. Grab your first circle ornament. Bend the sides — along the glue line down the middle — back and forth.

12. On one of the sides, put a little dab of glue near the bottom.

Now, press the dab of glue to the side next to it.

13. On the other side of the second flap, dab a little glue near the top.

Just like before, press the dab of glue to the side next to it.

14. Work your way around the circle until you go all the around.

String your line through the loop and you’re done!

How do your new ornaments look on the tree?

Using Color Music, we can actually see the pattern of consonant and dissonant intervals. And without a doubt, the connection between complementary colors and tritones is awesome. But we can see even more. For example, check out the gradation bar below. It highlights exactly what’s going on:

As the colors approach the red tonic (1), they have higher levels of red … while the colors that approach the green tritone (b5) have higher levels of green. Get it? The complementary colors illustrate opposite tritons. And, at the same time, the colors in between actually highlight the whole spectrum of intervals.

This pattern is even easier to see in a circular format. Again, the keys (or notes) that are closer to the tonic have higher levels of that color, while the more dissonant ones have increasingly higher levels of the dissonant tritone. Just like before, the connection between color and music is like magic!

To use an analogy, the tonic is like the life source … full of strong, consonant blood. But as you move in the direction of the dissonant tritone, it’s gradually bled dry. (Whoa.) Of course, this “red blood” analogy is convenient for describing the key of C, which happens to be red. But this same idea works for all 12 keys.

Another analogy is that the consonant tonic and its dissonant tritone are like the polar opposites of a single magnet. The more consonant keys are drawn to the tonic, while the more dissonant keys are repelled … gravitating toward the tritone. Which mean’s the keys/notes exactly in between—the major-sixth (A) and minor-third (Eb)—are neutralized, with equal allegiance to both extremes.

And … I could go on about the parallels with Star Wars, the force, and Luke Skywalker’s struggle to reconcile his affinity for Jedi principles and the temptation of turning to the dark side, in favor of some powerful paternal affection … but I won’t.

Anyway, you can see why I was geeking out with Ben, right? When we really looked at these patterns, it was amazing. And now, we can write better songs that sound good—much faster. So you really shouldn’t judge me, my friends. Because, if you’ve been following along, then you know it’s cool, too. (Happy songwriting!)

With Color Music, our spectrum of consonant and dissonant intervals starts to click. In the key of C, for example, we get a much better view of what this pattern is all about.

Of course, these colors may seem random at first. But as you look closer, some really cool stuff pops out. And I mean cool. The first is pretty obvious. Notice anything special about the red tonic (C) and its green tritone (Gb)?

Yep, the are complementary colors. Which happens to be a perfect analogy. In the world of color, complementary colors are complete opposites. And in the world of music, the tonic (1) and its tritone (b5) are complete opposites. So it only makes sense that these patterns overlap. (In fact, it’s even spooky cool.)

But then it gets even better. Because Color Music shows us so much more….

Make your own color wheel

Supplies:

• One (1) copy of the color wheel kit PDF printout
• Six (6) colored pencils (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple)
• One (1) regular pencil or pen
• Scissors
• One (1) paper clip (bigger is better, but any clip will work)

Vocabulary:

• color wheel
• square
• primary colors
• secondary colors
• complementary colors
• circle
• tertiary colors
• pattern
• piano keyboard

Activity:

Do you have a favorite color in the rainbow? The world is full of colors. The blue sky … green trees … yellow sun … orange cats … red cars … and purple flowers. Bright colors, dark colors, warm colors, and cool colors.

In the color wheel, there are 12 colors. Together, they look really good — like a rainbow. Have you seen a color wheel before?Artists use it all the time.

Let’s make our own color wheel! Check to make sure you have all your supplies.

1. We will start with our printout of the blank color wheel and scissors. Cut the paper in half so that you have a top half and a bottom half. Set the bottom half aside.

2. Before we put our color wheel together, we need to make sure we understand how the colors relate to each other. It’s time to color the top half of the paper, so grab the colored pencils.

First, color the square labeled “red.” It is at the very top. Don’t press too hard. Just be gentle.

3. Next, color the square labeled “yellow.” It is on the right, near the bottom. Can you see it?

4. Our next color is blue. Do you see it? Yep, it is the square on the left.

Hey, do you know what these colors are called? Artists say they are the primary colors — red, yellow, and blue.

Why are they called “primary colors?” It’s because we use them to make the other colors in the color wheel. To see what I mean, let’s make the secondary colors now.

5. What happens when we mix red and yellow? We make orange! find the square between red and yellow and color it orange.

6. What happens when we mix yellow with blue? Yep, we make green. Now, find the square between yellow and blue — color it green!

7. What color do you think comes from mixing blue and red? Purple is correct. Find the square between blue and red and color it purple.

These six (6) colors look like a rainbow. And do you want to know something cool? Each color has an opposite — called a complementary color. It is easy .

8. Red and green are complementary colors. So green is the opposite of red … and red is the opposite of green. On your color wheel, draw a straight line with your regular pencil. Connect these two colors, like this:

9. So, which color is the opposite of orange? Nice job! It is blue. Orange and blue are complementary colors. Now, draw a line between these two squares.

10. Okay, the last one is easy. Which color is the opposite of yellow? Yep, it is purple. Yellow and purple are complementary colors. So, draw a line between these two squares.

How does your color wheel look? Pretty good, huh? But wait … what about the circle shapes? They need colors, too. We call these last colors tertiary colors. And we make them by mixing the primary colors and secondary colors.

11. See that circle between red and orange? We will color it “red-orange.” It is just a mix of both red and orange. Get it?

First, color the circle with the darker color — your red pencil. (Don’t press too hard!) Next, add a layer of orange on top. These two colors will mix to make red-orange. Cool!

12. Now, let’s color the next circle orange-yellow. Remember, it is called “orange-yellow”  because it is between the orange square and the yellow square.

First, color this circle lightly with your orange pencil. Then add a layer of yellow on top. these two colors mix together to make orange-yellow. Awesome!

13. This is fun. Now, let’s color the other shapes in the same way. Remember to color the darker color first, and also not to press too hard.

When you are done, your wheel should look like this:

In music, we use these same 12 colors. They look like this:

But wait! These colors look different — like they got all mixed up. What happened? Well, we just use a simple new pattern from the color wheel. Let’s see how to make this new pattern.

Now you will need the scissors and the bottom half of your printout.

14. Use your scissors to cut out each shape on the gray lines. All the squares are on one side in the star shape. And all the circles are on the other side in the big round circle. When you finish cutting, your two pieces of paper should look like this:

15. Grab your paper clip. Bend it like this:

16. Using the paper clip, poke a hole through the piece of paper with circles. From the bottom, poke through the plus sign in the center.

17. Then, do the same with the piece of paper shaped like a star. Poke a hole through the plus sign at the center. When you are done, it will look like this:

18. Now, let’s spin the squares so we make the color wheel. Make sure that red is at the top.

Every color is right where it should be. But this color wheel does not look like the piano keyboard. No problem. We can easily make this pattern.

19. All we have to do is switch complementary colors. So, take the red square and have it trade places with the green square. Go ahead and spin the colors. Now, red is at the bottom … and green is at the top!

Hey, the other complementary colors traded places, too! Orange and blue switched and so did yellow and purple. Now, we have an “opposite” color wheel. Cool!

This is the color pattern we use in music. It is very simple. In Color Music, we learn all about this color pattern. It’s fun! And now that we know all 12 colors, we will learn super fast.

Quiz:

1. How many colors are in the color wheel?

2. Name the three primary colors.

3. What are the three secondary colors?

4. How many squares are in the color wheel?

5. What is red’s complementary color?

6. What is green’s complementary color?

7. How many circles are in the color wheel?

Of all the Disney Pixar movies, what do you think is the best one? A lot of people would say “Toy Story,” while others would say “Cars.” And I’d have to agree that these films are pretty great.

I mean, it’s like Pixar has the Midas touch—because nearly every one of their projects is pure gold. But for some weird reason, not many people remember the movie “Ratatouille.” It just wasn’t a favorite for some people … although I love it.

Yeah, yeah, maybe the plot line is a little far-fetched—about a rat becoming a star chef in Paris—but there’s just something about this movie that’s awesome.

For one, the music is nice. Throughout the film, melodies waft through the air like the fresh smell of a crisp baggette.

And another reason this movie is cool is because it includes an interesting scene about color and music. As the chef explains, “Good food is like music you can taste … color you can smell.” A symphony of light and sound. It’s poetry for the brain—check it out:

Now, if only we could apply Color Music to food. Then we’d have an insanely large sensory explosion. Whoa.

After playing through each major scale progression, you might have noticed something cool. For some crazy reason, Mother Nature totally loves us. Instead of throwing us some curveball, she decided to make things easy. When it comes to chord progressions, we don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Because they’re really just based on the same, old scale patterns we already know by heart.

In fact, we can even chop up and rearrange the chords in a progression to create new and interesting patterns … just like we did with the notes in a melody. As long as we favor the tonic chord (I), everything will sound nice. And that’s because the tonic chord (I) in a progression is like the tonic note (1) of a scale. It plays a central function in any particular key. The other chords simply play supporting roles in between.

You might even think of the tonic chord (I) as a strong and constant center of gravity. Like the center of its own little solar system, it creates a pull between the other chords … giving any progression a real sense of movement and direction. As we move away from and then back toward the tonic, we create a feeling of tension and release. And this back-and-forth motion between activity and relaxation brings our music to life.

In almost any song we play, the goal is to get back to our home—the tonic chord (I). All of the other chords in the progression exist as part of a roadmap to deliver us to our destination. The route can be simple (through just a chord or two) … or it can be complex (involving lots and lots of chords). But in the end, we always want to return to the tonic (I). Our “home sweet home.”

To see what I mean, let’s play a few simple chord progressions, shall we? Starting with the basic “I–V” pattern….

Chord progressions are really easy to play. And that’s because they’re based on the old, familiar scale patterns we already know. Using the C major scale, for example, we can come up with a chord progression that sounds awesome. We simply build one chord on the tonic (1) note … and another on the major-second (2) note … and another on the major-third (3) note … and so on. It’s all pretty straightforward.

Just like before, we still label each note with its own letter name. And we show the relationship between notes using numbers. But now, to show the relationship between the different chords in a progression, we simply turn those number labels intoRoman numerals … like this:

There’s nothing tricky about these Roman numerals. They still count out the same numbers of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8. But they also help us keep track of whether we’re talking about individual notes or entire chords. You see, we use the “regular” numbers to describe the notes in a scale or chord … while we use the Roman numerals to show the relationship between the chords in a progression. Get it?

Roman numerals even give us a quick way of showing whether a chord is major or minor. For example, can you see how the numerals for chords I, IV, and V are upper-case? That’s because those triads are major … while the lower-case numerals show us which chords are minor. (The vii chord—with its “o” symbol—is simply diminished.)

Sometimes, you’ll also hear people calling chords by their general names … like the tonic (I), subdominant (IV), dominant (V), etc. But these are just the same convenient labels we’ve already seen before. Sure, it might seem a little like déjà vu, but that’s what makes music so easy.

To get a feel for how these different labels work, try playing the same major scale progression in each key. Starting on the tonic chord (I), work your way through each triad. At this point, let’s focus on using only the left hand for each chord, shall we? And remember, it’s okay to glance down at the keyboard every once in a while … just to make sure our hands are moving into the correct position. After you’ve had a little practice, try showing off to your friends. Because they’re going to be jealous of your new skills.

We all know that different artists like working with certain types of media. For example, painters prefer paint … welders prefer metal … and musicians prefer sound. But recently, I saw some really cool artwork made out of unusual stuff: hair.

That’s right, we’re looking at a giraffe sculpted from this woman’s hair. It’s crazy. I was hanging out with my friend, Google, the other day when we found these images. The late Nagi Noda was an artist/director from Japan who specialized, among other things, in making “hair hats” for women. Talk about some serious skill—the walrus is especially cool, with it’s super-long tusks….

All of these pictures are amazing! Seriously … who thinks of this stuff? (Well, Ms. Noda, of course.) Every single piece must have taken hours to make. Ahhh, but it’s all in the name of art, you know? Anyway, I’m feeling inspired. So now, all I have to do is figure out how to write a song that sounds like this:

It’s fun to add chords to a song. Because each one helps “fatten out” the melody and propel the music forward. But at some point, you may be wondering how we decide on which chords to use. In other words, do we just randomly throw chords into a song … or is there some logic to things?

For example, in the song “London Bridge,” why do we play those particular chords—C major, D minor, and G major? As all the cool kids say, what is up with that? Well, the answer is simple. Because just like the melody of this song, its chord progression is also based on the C major scale.

To see what I mean, check it out: Our song “London Bridge” was written in the key of C. So each note in this melody comes from the C major scale. The pattern of notes has simply been chopped up and rearranged into something that sounds nice. And if you look closely, each chord is also built from that same basic pattern of notes.

That’s right, the root notes of the C major chord, D minor chord, and G major chord all come from the same C major scale. In that order, these triads are built from the tonic (1) note, major second (2) note, and dominant fifth (5) note.

We can also see that the notes in each of these chords come from the C major scale. For example, C major includes notes C–E–G … while D minor includes D–F–A. And of course, our friend G major has notes G–B–D. By combining these three triads in the key of C, we come up with a pleasant chord progression that makes the song “London Bridge” sound really nice.

In fact, if we go one step further, we can build a chord on every note of the C major scale … and come up with a cool pattern of both major and minor triads:

As we move through each of these chords—one after another—the result sounds a lot like the old, familiar C major scale … but on steroids. Just like the separate notes that make up the major scale pattern of 1  2  34  5  6  78, this pattern of chords sounds awesome. Each chord naturally leads to the next, like a path of stepping-stones that gives life and movement to this progression.

So in some strange twist of fate, we find that chord patterns are actually the same as note patterns. Like a one-trick pony, Mother Nature simply recycles the same, old scales we’ve already learned into the chord progressions musicians use to create songs. It’s amazing!

In a way, this might seem a bit disappointing … since it’s all the same stuff that we’ve seen before. But it’s also very exciting—because it means that we don’t have to learn a whole new bag of tricks. All we need to do is build on what we already know. And with Color Music, it’s a total cakewalk.

Back in the day, I used to be a big fan of candy. If something had sugar in it, I ate it. We’re talking Skittles, Starbursts, M&Ms, gum drops, jelly beans … you name it.

Lately, though, I’ve been sticking to my fruits and vegetables … although I still get my colored sweets through music. Like a fresh box of candy-coated chocolates, Color Music makes my eyes pop. Each note is like its own flavorful piece of sugar desert.

Ahhh … it’s the best of both worlds. I get to satisfy my sweet tooth—without getting any cavities. My ears and my teeth are happy.