MUSIC 111Fundamentals of Music Theory
- Units
- 0.50
- Faculty
- Arts
- Subject
- Music
When it runs
- F24
- W25
- S25
- F25
- W26
- S26
- F26
- W27
- S27
Ran in 6 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: scheduled, 2 lecture sections. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.
An introduction to the language of music in the Western art music tradition. Students will learn the fundamentals of musical notation and performance through practice exercises and creative projects. Students will also develop their musicianship skills through listening, sight-singing and analysis.
Prerequisites
None listed.
Antirequisites
- Not completed nor concurrently enrolled in any of the following:
- MUSIC270 - Music Theory 1 (0.50)
Notes
- For students with minimal Western music theory background.
Leads to
Fall 2026 sections
| Section | Class | Enrolled | Meets |
|---|---|---|---|
| LEC 001 | 4462 | 32 / 40 | M 13:30–14:50 W 13:30–14:50 |
Winter 2027 sections
| Section | Class | Enrolled | Meets |
|---|---|---|---|
| LEC 001 | 4321 | 0 / 60 | MW 13:30–14:50 |
| LEC 701 | 1730 | 70 / 9999 | Online or by arrangement |
Reviewed on UW Flow
87% liked it74% easy83% useful
From 30 ratings and 9 comments on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.
Lots of fun, lots of work, but it is a necessary evil. While the workload is a lot for an elective, it is easy and if you do it you tend to get the marks. Lots of participation marks, and nothing was particularly difficult (coming from someone with no prior music theory experience). I learned a TON in this class and enjoyed it a lot. Singing as a class did not feel scary even though I thought it would, workload was high to drill concepts, but very forgiving. All assessments are virtual, with either no time limits or very generous ones. I highly recommend this class to anyone with even a small interest in music! It felt like a wonderful break from my heavier classes despite its own workload,…
May 2026 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
Really enjoyed it! Took it as an online bird course since I already had a lot of music experience. Didn't attend any lectures and assessments were all online. The course covers quite a bit from scratch (literally learning how to count and read notes up to figured bass and harmonic function). I think it's a great intro theory course with potentially a lot of work but if you can read and play music already it's pretty easy. Course is well-organized and prof is very engaging from the little I saw.
Dec 2025 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
If you have any background in music theory, this is the most free course ever. Attended one lecture, and did most of the work. Ended the course with 92. All assessments are online and are more time consuming than challenging.
Dec 2024 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
I thought this was gonna be a bird course, but it took up so much time and energy that I ended up dropping it. Prof was amazing, super friendly and approachable, but I don't understand fractions so there wasn't much that could be done. You don't really listen to music or play any of it, you look at scores and count.
Nov 2023 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
Bird course. Not recommended for people with little to no musical background since the content is probably new and quite heavy. Very easy for anyone who is RCM level >=5. Just don't tell the prof that you're ARCT, because it's intended for students with "minimal experience".
Nov 2022 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
Discussed on r/uwaterloo
18 posts and comments in 17 threads mention MUSIC 111, January 2013 to December 2024. Quoted word for word, newest first; each reply sits under the post and the comment that started its branch. Search r/uwaterloo for newer posts.
Fall 2024
MUSIC 111? 1 point, 0 comments
u/monkerpopo: “I'm looking for bird courses in the winter term. If you have experience with this course, how birdy is it? I have some good music experience that is probably overkill for the course, however I'm curious about the performance video assignments. …”
Winter 2024
Bird course for high gpa 8 points, 11 comments
“Is there any recommendation for bird elective that could also help with gpa? Hopefully an easy 90+ but 85+ also sounds good. I want to apply to grad school so gpa matters a bit to me. Thanks guys.”
u/K_ST_: “… fairly manageable for those who have any experience If you have some experience with music: MUSIC 111 If you don’t struggle too much with writing (i.e. …”
Winter 2022
MUSIC111 vs MUSIC270 3 points, 3 comments
u/ElusiveNirvana: “Anyone taken these and know the difference between them? I know the basic of music theory (e.g. major and minor scales) but nothing compared to all you RCM folks. Any suggestions? Thanks!”
Fall 2020
Anyone in MUSIC 111 got their grade on Quest? 0 points, 1 comment
Anyone in MUSIC 111 got there grade on Quest? 1 point, 0 comments
Winter 2020
Anyone take MUSIC 111? 2 points, 1 comment
u/Rayquaza1999: “Looking for bird courses. I want to take MUSIC 111, but I have RCM advanced rudiments. Anyone with previous RCM music experience manage to get in or pretend they didn't know shit for the placement test?”
Spring 2019
Is MUSIC 111 easy? 3 points, 9 comments
u/notifyObservers: “Looking for ez 90+. I already passed RCM level 10 theory exams few years ago if that makes 111 easier. Thanks in advance.”
2A Math Course/Major Selection Advice? 4 points, 6 comments
u/woohoowaterloo: “… I was thinking HLTH 101 because I've heard it's fairly easy and I may want to do biostatistics, or MUSIC 111 cause it seems like it could be fun. Any other suggestions? …”
Spring 2018
Anyone take MUSIC 111 recently? 8 points, 3 comments
u/ITSCADWALLADER: “So I'm trying to find a bird course for next Fall and I found an old syllabus from 2013 for MUSIC 111. …”
Fall 2017
Bird courses recommendations (easy to get >90%) for next term? 8 points, 31 comments
“Have a lot of hard courses next term, looking for something to balance them out. Some courses are easy to pass but hard to get over 90 in, and I'm not looking for those. …”
u/goatsegirl: “FR 151 (Basic French I) online MUSIC 111 (Fundamentals of Music Theory) if you happen to know music theory already”
What was your favourite class this term? 20 points, 53 comments
u/goatsegirl: “BIOL239 (genetics) and MUSIC111(fundamental music theory)”
Any way to disable UWCourseLinker from posting? 16 points, 26 comments
“posting a reply to my comment I find the bot annoying.”
u/Jackhofmann: “PSYCH 483 PSYCH 484 PSYCH 485 PSYCH 486 PSYCH 490R PSYCH 499A PSYCH 499B PSYCH 499C PSYCH 621 PSYCH 630 PSYCH 677A PSYCH 704A PSYCH 704B PSYCH 707 PSYCH 710 PSYCH 714 PSYCH 717 PSYCH 720A PSYCH 721A …”
u/Jackhofmann: “… MTE 380 MTE 400A MTE 420 MTE 481 MTE 544 MTE 545 MTHEL 131 MTHEL 300 MUSIC 100 MUSIC 110 MUSIC 111 MUSIC 116 MUSIC 117 MUSIC 121W MUSIC 140 MUSIC 181AW MUSIC 216 MUSIC 217 MUSIC 222 MUSIC 226 MUSIC 227 MUSIC 232 MUSIC 253 MUSIC 254 MUSIC 261 MUSIC 270 MUSIC 275 MUSIC 316 MUSIC …”
Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026
- Undergraduate Calendar, 2026–27The official entry
- Requirements for Fall 2026Waterloo’s requisite checker
- Schedule of Classes, Fall 2026Instructors, rooms, live seats
- Quest Class SearchWhere you enrol
- Course outlinesSyllabi from past terms (UW login)
- UW FlowStudent ratings and reviews
- WClassesPast sections back to 2004, and who taught them