want to learn a different daw?

Let us know which one. Vote now

Practical Harmony 1

A THINKSPACE INTERACTIVE COURSE

Music Fundamentals

SAVE 30%

~~$119~~ $79

Save over 50% when you buy in The Cinematic Bundle. Limited-time offer.

Introductory Offer: Save 30%, plus get a free live webinar and Q&A with course tutors Lucy and Tom.

Buy Now

Lifetime access. 30-day money-back policy

Expand your harmonic vocabulary to set your ideas free

If you’re a composer, songwriter, or performing musician, this course will transform your harmonic vocabulary, allowing you to express your ideas like never before.

You’ll gain fluency in chords and progressions, learn how to use chords to elevate melodies, write and play more eloquently, and much more. This hands-on journey takes you from basic triads right through to suspensions, 6th and 7th chords, and more – while providing plenty of fun ways to practice your skills along the way.

want to learn a different daw?

Let us know which one

BECOME FLUENT IN CHORDS, VOICINGS, SUSPENSIONS, AND MORE

Harmony lies at the heart of every piece of music you write or play – every song, film cue or improvisation. But there is nothing more frustrating than having great ideas without the harmonic vocabulary to express yourself.

The more you understand about how harmony works, the more you can set your creative imagination free. That's what this course is all about.

By the end of the course you will be able to:

Choose chords that elevate your melodies.

Build compelling chord progressions.

Identify harmonic problems and confidently resolve them by truly understanding what’s happening.

Understand how to make more interesting chord choices, and create smooth transitions between them.

Improvise accompaniments from a lead sheet using keyboard and guitar chords.

Everything you'll learn

module 1

intervals, chords & triads

We begin with the fundamentals of chords and triads – how they work, their connection to keys and scales, chord notation, and the infamous circle of fifths. Even if you know some of these topics, a refresher will strengthen your foundation for the rest of the course.

module 2

inversions & voicings

Then we’ll take things a step further by exploring different chord voicings and inversions, which notes to double, techniques for smoother chord transitions, and ways to spice up progressions. Along the way, we’ll examine how inversions have been used in famous songs and film scores.

module 3

chords with melody, chord progressions

Next, we'll explore melody and its interaction with harmony. We’ll cover concepts like harmonic rhythm and harmonic gravity – powerful tools that provide a deep understanding of how to use harmony to elevate your melodies.

module 4

suspensions, pedals & changing keys

Get familiar with powerful harmonic devices that can elevate your writing and playing. They’re everywhere in music—now you can use them too. This module covers techniques that transform harmony from merely ‘competent’ to ‘Oh wow, what was that?!’ (in a good way, of course).

module 5

6th & 7th chords

So far we’ve been working with triads: three-note chords. But chords can have more than three notes. It’s time to explore the enormous potential of four-note chords, particularly the different types of 6th and 7th chords. Along the way, we’ll listen to how classic songs by The Beatles, Stevie Wonder and The Beach Boys.

module 6

harmony in minor keys

Minor harmony is a topic that puzzles many people because there are so many choices – three different minor scales for each key. In this module, we’ll show you how it all works, so you can truly understand and take charge of these powerful harmonic colors.

coming in practical harmony 2 (late 2025)

More advanced topics including chromatic, modal, and jazz harmony, 9th, 11th and 13th chords, parallel and borrowed chords, and advanced cinematic harmonic techniques.

taught by composers, songwriters and performers

SAVE 30%

Guy Michelmore

Guy Michelmore is an award-winning film, games and TV composer whose clients include Marvel, Disney, Dreamworks, Lionsgate and dozens of major TV networks around the world. He’s best known for his work with Marvel on animated feature films including Ultimate Avengers, as well as hundreds of episodes of television including Iron Man and Hulk.

SAVE 30%

BRADLEY JORDAN

Bradley is a film, TV and video games composer who has worked alongside Guy on many major studio projects – including for DreamWorks, BBC, and Netflix. Hosting many of the tutorials in this course, and bursting with enthusiasm, he has an uncanny knack for asking the questions you want the answers to.

SAVE 60%

LUCY HACKETT

Lucy is a musician and composer whose work has been performed and published worldwide (Netflix, Vogue, APM). She is a 2024 Sound and Music ‘Seed Award’ winner and a 2025 Amazon MGM Studios X PRS Foundation ‘Prelude’ recipient. Lucy has gigged extensively across the UK and Europe and has recorded at the world-famous Abbey Road Studios.

SAVE 60%

Tom Janes

Tom is ThinkSpace Education's resident expert in all things harmony, as well as being an extremely talented classical guitarist. Since 2011 Tom has regularly performed around the UK as a solo classical guitar act and as part of a duo. Tom has also contributed performances and arrangements for TV, short films, audio dramas, and video games

Learn in The BEST Way possible – By Doing

MINUSONES

MinusONEs are quick projects that let you apply a newly learned skill – such as adding a harmonic progression to a melody. Instead of starting from a blank screen, we provide MIDI tracks, audio files, and scores that are missing one essential ingredient—you!

New! Jams

Playing along with other musicians is a hugely rewarding experience, and really helps to cement your knowledge. So, bring your new skills to our virtual jam session! We provide the chord charts so you can play along with Lucy and our house band.

New! Guitar & Keyboard Skills

Knowing the theory is one thing, but what happens when you sit at the keyboard or pick up the guitar? Don’t worry – help is at hand! Join Lucy (keyboards) and Tom (guitar) for 'get-you-going' tutorials to get you using your new-found skills with confidence.

Interactive video & quizzes

Our exclusive interactive video technology allows you to have a virtual conversation with Guy and the team: answer questions, make choices, and then get feedback on your decisions. Plus, there are plenty of fun quizzes along the way.

WATCH A FREE SAMPLE

Deconstructing The E.T. Flying theme

The themes of John Williams comes as much from his style as it does his mastery of the orchestra. In this sample from the course, we explore ways that John Williams expresses his own style, as well as compositional technique, in his Flying Theme from the movie E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial.

INTERACTIVE VIDEO

A COURSE THAT’S PERSONALISED TO YOU

DAW School is packed with interactive videos, personalising the course to the level you are starting at, and where you want to get to.

They are also a great way to check what you’ve learned from a module, and suggesting any areas you might want to revisit before you move on.

Widgets

Flex your new-found skills and knowledge with fun, interactive widgets – mini-apps that have been especially created for this course.

Why not give one a try right here and test your diatonic interval knowledge?

Flex your new-found skills and knowledge with fun, interactive widgets – mini-apps that have been especially created for this course.

Name That Diatonic Interval!

Ready to begin?

connect on discord

This ThinkSpace Interactive course includes lifetime access to our ever-growing community of music makers on Discord. You can chat to other people taking the course, pick up and share tips, and grow your network. You can also share your MinusONEs and other projects from the course to gain useful feedback and pointers from your peers.

Don’t worry if you’ve never used Discord before, it’s simple to get set up, and totally free.

“Thank you for the wonderful course. You have opened my eyes to the world of harmony... I love your style of teaching, you made me feel like I’m sitting in your garden booth!”

– Markus Gruene, ThinkSpace customer

“What’s really great is the structure, because "you don't know, what you don't know”, so you can’t make up a learning structure yourself, because you don't know what you need to cover.”

– Florian Heinemann, ThinkSpace customer

"I can now get more music, of better quality, out of less inspiration, and more quickly! In terms of value for money, I think you're in the right place!"

– David Rollinson, ThinkSpace customer

Buy today, start anytime

Become fluent with chords and harmony to better express your musical ideas.

Over 40,000 words of searchable, illustrated course text – the ultimate resource.

Over 15 hours of video: explanations, tutorials, and music analysis.

Lifelong access to our global community of music-makers on Discord

BUY NOW — ~~$119~~ $79

Lifetime access. Start, finish and revisit anytime.
30-day money-back policy

Frequently Asked Questions

If you have any questions not answered here, please get in touch using the contact details below and we'll get back to you.

Harmony One and Two focus on teaching classical harmony and effective counterpoint, making them ideal for orchestrating string sections, instrumental part writing, and achieving an authentic period music sound.

In contrast, Practical Harmony provides a solid foundation in contemporary music theory, making it more applicable to modern genres such as contemporary/cinematic orchestral, rock, pop, and jazz.

You can use any DAW for this course. If you are using a DAW with limited capabilities (Garageband or Cubase LE, for example), you may find certain plugins or features aren’t available to you that are used in the videos. That said, the course largely focuses on teaching you how to write music, not DAW-specific techniques, so use whichever DAW you are most comfortable with. Reach out to us if you have any concerns about your equipment's capabilities, and we will be happy to advise.

have a question? contact us

contact@thinkspace.ac.uk

+44 (0)1243 256049

Related Courses

HARMONY ONE

$99

Transform your music with harmonic interest and master 4-part harmony.

HOW TO WRITE MUSIC

$49

Bestseller. A step-by-step guide to turning your ideas into professional music.

LEARN MUSIC THEORY

$49

Bestseller. Get better at the fundamentals with this quick, practical and fun course.

SAMPLED ORCHESTRATION

$249

A ThinkSpace Interactive course. Create MIDI mockups with the realism of a live orchestra.

See All Courses

Related Masters degrees

MA PROFESSIONAL MEDIA COMPOSITION

Offering much more than your average Film Scoring Masters, this course teaches you all you need to know about the challenges of writing for film, TV, and other types of commercial media. Hear from professionals with a long history of working in the industry, as well as from those working on the front-lines today.

MA CREATIVE MUSIC PRODUCTION

(Formerly MA Songwriting & Music Production) Few musicians truly manage to fulfil their potential. We want to change that. This degree is designed to bring out the best in you and to help you to keep innovating long after you’ve graduated.

See All DEGREES