FPA 104

severuspls

So I'm taking three courses and working part time, which has always been a perfect balance for me, but FPA 104 (Intro to Music) has caught my eye as I've been picking up guitar lately.

I'm afraid this course will put me over my capacity if it ends up being a lot of work. I've seen reviews by students with music backgrounds saying "it was a breeze" but my background in music consists of playing simple chords and reading beginner guitar tableture online.

My question is:

For someone who is basically musically untrained, is the work load more time consuming than regular introductory academic subjects?

Thanks!  

MXC

I've never taken the course but I do have a music theory background.

If you really are interested in learning music theory it should be pretty easy, I can't comment on how much work you'll be given but as long as you have interest and enthusiasm it should be pretty easy to learn. It's not something like advanced harmonies.

jianming

I wouldn't take it. I've heard the workload is about the same as other courses, but you can get similar or better education online for free through websites and YouTube--without being forced to listen to crap music. The FPA music courses seem geared towards people working towards being composers + pianists, versus guitarists.

I've played guitar for 12 years and the only use I've had for my piano training has been playing sheet music written for piano on guitar -- but even then, you can figure them out by ear as well - or easier, yet, use Ultimate Guitar.

Even if I didn't read sheet music, I could just transcribe the sheet music into my DAW, export as midi, then import into free midi-to-tab software.