<p>Next year is the first ever year that my school is offering AP Music Theory and only two people took the IB Music exam this year. Both classes are taught by the same teacher, the band director. The only other difference is that IB Music is an independent-study course whereas AP Music Theory will be taught in a class.</p>
<p>I'm pretty sure that I'm not majoring in music; however, I enjoy music very much and I've always thought of it as my stress-reliever. (I'm also currently in one all-county after-school orchestra and an after-school independent study strings class.) Either way, taking a music class next year will be a breath of fresh air in the middle of all my other stressful AP/IB classes.</p>
<p>However, after looking at the FRQ's for Music Theory, I'm not sure if I still want to proceed. Sight-singing/ear-training aren't as easy for me as it is for other people and I'm afraid that the class I wanted to take for fun would result to the class that adds more stress. At the same time, I was told that the IB Music exam is pretty easy but I'm not sure how much studying I can get done all by myself... :P</p>
<p>I need to make this decision by the 28th (next week) because I won't be able to change any of my classes next year. >.< Help me please! Thanks!</p>
<p>I think the best person you should talk to would be the band director.</p>
<p>I just completed music theory at the college level, and if you’re into playing music then it’s absolutely necessary. sight singing and ear training are indispensable if you play a lot. I promise that sight singing and ear training are easy for no one. It may seem that way for a little while, but by the second semester you realize you’re all the same off. You can buy MacGamut to help you with ear training and melodic dictations. </p>
<p>If you play music a lot, everything you learn in theory can be almost immediately applied. I believe that class made me a better musician and composer.</p>
<p>^^ I somewhat disagree; for people with perfect pitch, sight singing and ear training don’t even need to be learned.</p>
<p>Anyway, take APMT - it’s really not too bad, and you could take the IB exam as well since it’s an independent study.</p>
<p>if you have perfect pitch you still need ear training, intervals and such. so what if you can sing where c4 is, it doesn’t matter if you can’t hear a sixth above it… </p>
<p>anyway, most people don’t have perfect pitch.</p>
<p>^^ I know that, I was just saying.</p>
<p>And actually, you don’t need any ear training. I know this because I have absolute perfect pitch and I’ve been able to recognize intervals and notes ever since I started learning music and learned what a sixth actually meant.</p>