LightNote

@rrhoover And like most art, consumption has the opportunity to increase as ability to create increases. As understanding brush-stroke structure might encourage one to begin to paint, even a general understanding of how music comes together and works might encourage one to write a song. Arguably the most interesting thing, though, is how understanding of "how to do it" changes how it's done. For example, understanding the theory of "the right way" to create a song many times encourages intrepid people to explore "the wrong ways," thereby opening up new possibilities in song structure and lyrical composition. Such experimentation lead to the development of new types of music in the past: improvisational jazz, alternative rock's use of the loud-QUIET-loud dynamic by bands like the Pixies and Nirvana, and the use of the formerly forbidden "tritone" in early heavy metal.