I believe that in the next five years music schools should develop a pre-requisite course on why students should study music and music theory. For example, based on your family background and life experiences, how you relate to music specifically. Before embarking on any system of music theory, students need some time to really think about the direction of their musical path, rather than being forced to accept the theories of German composers from the 18th century in Europe. This course could have some lectures that introduce different music styles and composition methods in various countries or regions by professors. Or it could be better that every student needs to prepare and do some research for a class-wide presentation of music theory and style based on their ethnic background.

 

As Adam Neely says in his video, if the language is not universal, why music theory should be? Most of today’s music students have fallen into the misconception that they need current old fashion music theory to explain all music in a unified way. In recent decades, however, music schools have been teaching more than just classical music and vocal technique. Music theory, however, is still not innovative. Therefore, in the next three to five years, music theory should be brought up to date, and music theory should be developed in line with the relevant specializations, for example, students who study music and computer science in uvic should not be taught music theory together with the students in composition major, but should have a special course on modern and contemporary music theory from various countries.

 

To change entrenched white European music theory, both the professors and the students would have to actively explore new and uncharted musical territories, rather than sticking to the well-known male German composers’ pieces of the 18th century. I believe that good pieces of music are always stylistically different but emotionally connected. Music theory courses should be using more examples of comparing and contrasting music, rather than listing the European masterpieces. However, instead of telling students how our contemporary music theory includes many racist elements, let the student naturally assume that there are too many different branches and directions of music theory and that the present theory is only one of them is the better way to remove this deep-seated prejudice. That is, making the idea that 18th-century European music theory is part of the new music theory a common-sense intuition for all.