Plain-English music theory & how to use these tools
Short, practical articles on BPM, scales, chords, tuning, and the topics behind every MusoKit tool. Written by working musicians, not bots.
The Pentatonic Scale: Complete Guide for Guitarists & Beginners
What is the pentatonic scale, why it works over almost anything, and how to use major vs. minor pentatonic. Full guide with note patterns and examples.
Music Intervals Explained: Complete Chart & Guide
Every interval from unison to octave — semitone counts, sound quality, ear-training mnemonics, and how intervals build every chord and scale.
How to Read Guitar Tabs: Complete Beginner's Guide
Tablature explained from scratch: strings, fret numbers, chord notation, and every technique symbol — hammer-ons, bends, slides, palm mutes.
Chord Inversions Explained: Root Position, 1st, 2nd & 3rd
What are chord inversions, how do you use them for smooth voice leading, and what do slash chords like C/E actually mean?
How to Practise With a Metronome: The Right Way
Most musicians use a metronome wrong. Learn the slow-subdivide technique, backbeat practice, and the ramp method for building real speed.
Guitar scales for beginners — the 5 scales every guitarist needs
Minor pentatonic, blues scale, natural minor, major scale, and major pentatonic — the five essential scales in the order you should learn them, with notes and when to use each.
Music theory for beginners — the only guide you need
Notes, intervals, scales, chords, and keys explained without jargon. Everything you need to understand and write music, starting from zero.
How to tune a guitar — standard tuning & every string explained
Standard tuning notes (E A D G B E), tuning with a chromatic tuner, tuning by ear, and the most useful alternate tunings — Drop D, DADGAD, Open G, and more.
Best chord progressions for beginners (with examples)
10 essential progressions every beginner should know — with song examples, a transposition cheat sheet, and a free generator to hear them all.
How to write a chord progression in any key
A plain-English guide — how to choose chords from a key, why certain progressions work emotionally, and examples across pop, jazz, blues, and folk.
Chord Progression Generator — free tool for any key and style
Generate pop, jazz, blues, folk, and R&B progressions in any key instantly — with audio playback and Roman numeral analysis.
Free online drum machine: build beats in your browser
How to use a browser-based step sequencer to sketch drum patterns, with genre starting points for hip-hop, trap, house, and reggae — no download needed.
Music scales guide: every scale a musician needs to know
A complete reference covering major, minor, pentatonic, blues, and all seven modes — intervals, characteristic sounds, and where each scale is used.
Circle of fifths for songwriting: the practical guide
How to use the circle to pick a key, find your diatonic chords, borrow from neighbouring keys, and modulate smoothly between keys.
Free online guitar tuner: tune your guitar in a browser
A guide to microphone-based chromatic tuning, standard tuning notes, common alternate tunings (Drop D, DADGAD, Open G), and tips for accurate intonation.
BPM to milliseconds: the complete guide for producers
The formula, a reference table for common tempos, and how to use tempo-synced delay times, reverb pre-delay, and LFO rates in your productions.
How to find the best key for a singer
Picking the right key for a singer transforms a song. Here's how to find a singer's range, calculate the right transposition, and avoid the most common mistakes.
How to transpose a song step by step
Transposing a song to a new key is one of the most useful skills for any musician. Here's how to do it for chord progressions, single notes, and instrument transposition.
Standard guitar tuning, explained (and why it's E A D G B E)
Why is standard guitar tuning E A D G B E? The history, the logic, and how it shapes the way the guitar plays. Plus alternate tunings and when to use them.
The seven modes of the major scale, explained
Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian, Locrian. A clear breakdown of what modes are, how they work, and when to use each.
How to read a guitar chord diagram
A clear, plain-English guide to reading guitar chord diagrams: strings, frets, finger numbers, mutes, open strings, barre indicators, and more.
432 Hz vs 440 Hz: the truth and the myths
Some musicians swear by 432 Hz tuning. Others say it makes no difference. Here's what's actually true, what's myth, and how to decide for yourself.
Major vs minor scales: what's the real difference?
Major vs minor isn't just "happy vs sad" — there are concrete intervallic differences. Plain-English breakdown of major, minor, and how to use both.
The circle of fifths, explained simply
The circle of fifths is the most useful diagram in Western music theory. A clear explainer covering keys, key signatures, relative minors, and how to read it.
How to find the BPM of a song (3 ways)
Three reliable ways to find the BPM of any song: tap tempo, manual counting, and automatic detection. With practical tips for tricky cases.
What is BPM, and why does it matter?
BPM stands for beats per minute — the standard way of measuring the speed of music. Plain-English explainer with examples and how to find any song's BPM.