Western Harmony Simplified is a unique music “theory” book. Author Tom Regis draws from his background as a classically trained pianist steeped in various ‘popular’ styles and, also as a writer and former second career attorney, to organize a seemingly complex subject into its most fundamental components. The result is a study of harmony that provides a careful step by step analysis designed to open the reader to the simple idea of the seven tone system that lies at the core of the Western musical heritage. The book is unique in that it not only provides the kind of exercises and examples we have become familiar with in a music theory book, but also in its from the ground up presentation of the organic mechanisms that build this system. This is neither a purely jazz or classical approach to learning harmony; it is an approach that views all of Western music as being derived from the same source.
At times detailed in the text and not shy of a philosophical bent, it is also in its own way, an easy theory book, a comprehensive book on Western harmony for all musicians, as the author has also kept the presentation simple, utilizing a piano keyboard graphic as the basis for the numerous examples. An extensive appendices section contains reinforcing materials for the body of the book as well as materials designed for more detailed study. These sections continue to use the piano keyboard graphics but also introduce examples in a staff note format that can include those readers inexperienced with musical notation.
Author Tom Regis’s love affair with harmony began as a child by way of his communion with the piano works of Beethoven and continued throughout his growth as a pianist and his inevitable encounter with the harmonic language of Bill Evans and other greats of jazz piano. In From Beethoven to Bill Evans: WESTERN HARMONY SIMPLIFIED, the author outlines a comprehensive system for understanding the elements and construction of harmony, and unlike other harmony/theory books, WHS never loses sight of the forest through the trees, offering a simple approach for the layman and experienced alike.
What You’ll Learn in the Book
- Explains the elements and construction of Western Harmony from basic scale structure and triads, to more advanced harmonic concepts, using a step by step approach
- Combines the classical and jazz approaches to harmony into one unified system that focuses on the underlying simplicity of the seven note scale and its chords, and the simple tension and release mechanisms that propel chord movement
- Is written for the layman and novice musician, as well as for the more experienced:
1. Text contains defined terms and boxed comments
2. 126 clearly labeled keyboard graphics accompany the text
3. An extensive appendix reviews and further details the concepts laid out in the text; appendix includes labeled staff notation examples designed for the non-reading musician
- Also includes chapters on the harmony of blues, traditional and more exploratory jazz chording, and the harmony of more esoteric styles such as folk chording and neo-soul.
- Is written in an enthusiastic voice borne of author Tom Regis’s deep understanding and passion for the subject.
Explore the Book’s Content
Sample Pages
From CHAPTER II: DIATONIC HARMONY
From CHAPTER XI: EXPANDED APPROACHES
From Appendix 1: Formation of Triads
From Appendix 10: Altered Jazz Chords
