Some musicians and many young people who are learning about music, often think that music theory is a little dry. However, having some knowledge of theory can mean the difference between getting your ideas down onto the page/computer and feeling stuck.
The first step to understanding music theory is recognising that there are 12 notes in the western musical scale - which is the scale used in most modern/contemporary music.
The second step is understanding that not all of those notes get used every time we make a song. That is because we are usually going to work in a specific key signature. A key signature is only going to contain 7 notes. These notes tend to sound cohesive - a little bit like they were meant to sit along side each other. However, we are probably not going to need all of those notes either, when we are composing our songs.
One of the most useful pieces of music theory knowledge that can help you right bass lines and lead lines much faster, is the "Funk Formula". Say you intend to write or song or have a sample that is in the key of A Minor. You might assume that when composing new music ideas, you can hit every white key on your MIDI keyboard or your piano roll inside your digital audio workstation and still be in key. And you would be right. But would it sound any good? Probably not.
The "Funk Formula" is a great place to kick things off and could help you to write more engaging musical ideas, faster. With the Funk Formula you really only need to worry about 4 notes in any given key signature. They are as follows: 1, 4,5 and Flat 7. So, if we are working inside of our key of A minor (all the white keys on keyboard or piano), then we would be looking to use the following notes: A (1), D (4), E (5) and G (Flat 7). In fact, a great place to start is just by adding two notes: the first would be your flat7 - in this case G - and the second note, would be note 1, which would be A. Add these as 8th notes at the start of your loop and already you will be off to creating a solid groove! Give it a try.
Here's an example of a bassline using the funk formula:
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