I geeked out at my chorus this week. We talked briefly about marking our music and some important things to notice when singing 4-part barbershop, and their homework was to go home and delve into their own sheet music (I did give them a cheat sheet). I made a poster. This was an old school poster layout, with a yard stick and rulers, done in pencil, then in ink. It gives examples of the tonic chord (or one (I) chord), rubs (notes next to each other), and octaves. My youngest wanted to help, so she marked the colored sections (bonus, she starts seeing the relationships too). Learning to recognize and hear these aspects helps us along toward making better music.

I admit I don’t use the colors, but I do use the numbers, and I’ve been naming as many chords as I can, not just the tonic. It is good practice.