Introduction

Hello!
Thanks so much for checking out and purchasing this course. It truly means a lot to me ^_^

If you’re like me, you are intrigued by Japanese music. The unique progressions has a way of taking you on a musical journey and can make you feel a certain way, whether it be excitement, nostalgia, or melancholy. You don’t even have to understand the lyrics to know what they are talking about, and I think being able to do that with music is really cool. It was rare that I came across Western music that put more weight on the backing instruments and chords than it did the melody and lyrics.

While I was digging, the concept that held me back from understanding Japanese music was the Western idea that all progressions should start on the I (home) chord. If you’re playing in the Key of C, you will start every progression with C major, or at least end on C major. When I would utilize this Western theory concept to create music, it just sounded boring and predictable.

Below is an audio clip I created using 5 of the progressions from the photo above:
I-IV-V  |   I-vi-IV-V  |  I-V-vi-IV  |  I-IV-I-V  |  I-vi-ii-V

I knew there was something Japan was doing different so I kept digging. The first Japanese progression that I came across was the stereotypical ‘anime progression’: IV-V-iii-vi. In the Key of C, the chords would be: F major, G major, E minor, A minor. Below, I made a clip with the progression: IV-V-iii-vi-IV-V-vi.

As you could see, the I chord (C major) is no where present in this progression. It doesn’t start, nor end on C major, thus creating a floating feeling. This introduced the concept that, not all progressions need to start on I, or have the I at all!

Marty Friedman’s video on The Differences Between Western and Japanese Music also gave me the leverage and confidence I needed to keep digging for answers, and now, I would say I have a pretty strong grasp on why and how Japanese music sounds different from a musical theory concept. I’m excited to share all the information I’ve gathered in this course.

If you didn’t understand anything I just said, don’t worry! Through the first chapter of the course, I’m going to break down music to it’s very core so you’ll be able to understand anything music wise, both inside and outside of this course. Trust me, when you start to learn music theory from the very basics, everything else will be super easy to understand.

Then the following chapter, we’re going to get into what musical concepts Japan loves to utilize that makes their music sound quite different than what Westerners are used to. This course is not only going to be eye opening, but it’s going to be really fun and interesting too! Everything you’ve ever heard and wondered about, you’ll be able to create with confidence, so look forward to it! ^_^