Color Music is sweet because it reveals every note pattern in music. At a glance, each color tells us which note is which … and how they all relate. Like a powerful one-two punch, this color code gives us a big advantage in music. But the colors alone can’t do the job. Which is why

(… continued from “Color Code, part 3“) Looking at music through the letters and numbers is like wearing a pair of opaque glasses. If you can’t really see through the lenses, then what is the point? Ahhh … but this is where Color Music comes in. Because it finally solves our problem. Like a pair

  (… continued from “Color Code, part 2“) When we apply numbers to music, the poor fit becomes obvious. While the musical pattern repeats seamlessly, the number labels look choppy and awkward. And it gets worse because letters have this same problem. Like the number line, the alphabet is also a linear pattern. So when

(… continued from “Color Code, part 1“) The old, medieval system of notation was sloppy … at best. The reason, my friends, has to do with the difference between linear and cyclical patterns. (Yes, that sounds geeky and technical. But it actually makes a lot of sense.) You see, music is really all about cyclical patterns.

  !!! Warning: Music nerdery ahead !!! Okay, so I’ve already said that traditional notation is confusing. And that standard music symbols are too complicated. But the truth is, there’s even more to it. Because the letters and numbers musicians use aren’t just inconvenient—they are fundamentally flawed. And that’s why students continue to struggle. In

Here’s my prediction for 2011:  it’s going to be a great year. And for music, it will be outstanding. Yes, we’ll have cool, new technologies … like high-tech stereo speakers, Zunes, and iPods. But what’s going to make 2011 really cool isn’t the way we listen to music. It’s all about how we will actually

The thing I like about Color Music is that it’s so simple. Using only a few pictures, it gives us a clear view of music. Just a couple of basic patterns … nothing complex like traditional notation. We can learn any song in a flash through a direct connection between our instruments and the notes on

The key to learning music is to understand note patterns first—then the language of a musician. That way, we can truly understand how to make music. No confusion or distractions with strange words or terminology. Just pure immersion into what music is really all about—simple patterns. And what’s nice is these patterns are super simple. So

Traditional music methods aren’t all bad. Mainly, because they give us a common vocabulary—a shared language that musicians can use to communicate. Over the centuries, music nerds have created all sorts of handy words to describe sound. So that when we talk about “tonics,” or “sharp-fives,” or “E-flat,” you know what I mean. The trouble is, traditional methods start with