With respect to social life, the most advanced theory of social development reflects the objective regularities of social development and at the same time embodies the ideology of progressive social forces. In material production, the role consists in the realization of scientific discoveries made possible by scientific theories, particularly in the age of the modern scientific and technological revolution and the transformation of science into a direct productive force. This programming role of a theory with respect to practice is evidenced both in the sphere of material production and in social life.
Marxism-Leninism rejects not only the depreciation of theory into an identification with practice but also scholastic theorization, which separates theory from reality.īy making use of the knowledge embodied in a theory, man is able to create that which does not exist in the natural or social reality at hand but is possible from the point of view of the objective laws revealed by the theory. Consequently, a theory opens up new prospects before practice and broadens its horizons. The role of a theory is not limited to the generalization of the experience of practical activity and the application of this experience to new situations but extends to the creative processing of the experience. Since it is based on social practice and provides integral, reliable, and systematically developed knowledge of the essential relationships and regularities of reality, a theory constitutes the most advanced form of scientific grounding and programming of practical activity. It is characteristic of a theory that some elements are logically dependent on others and that the content of the theory can be deduced from some set of more primitive statements and concepts in accordance with certain logical and methodical principles and rules. In structure a theory is an internally differentiated but integral system of knowledge. Lenin wrote, in regard to knowledge in the form of a theory, that “theoretical cognition ought to give the object in its necessity, in its all-sided relations” ( Poln. In a narrower and more specific sense of the word, a theory is the highest and most highly developed form of organization of scientific knowledge it provides an integral representation of the regularities and essential relationships in the area of reality that constitutes the object of the theory. Major contemporary theorists are Paul Hindemith, who propounded the idea of non-triadic pitch centrality, and Milton Babbitt, who has published revealing explications of twelve-tone music.Ī theory, in the broad sense of the term, is a complex of opinions, concepts, and ideas aimed at the interpretation and explanation of some phenomenon. The writings of Heinrich Schenker are among the most important in the sphere of tonal theory. Jean Philippe Rameau sought to show how the major-minor system of tonal harmony derives from the inherent acoustical properties of sound itself, and establish the laws of harmonic progression. Gioseffo Zarlino (1515–90) was the first to consider the triad as a compositional reference. Medieval European theory dealt with notation, modal and rhythmic systems, and the relation of music to Christianity. This theory was transmitted, largely erroneously, to medieval Europe by the Roman philosopher Boethius in his De musica (6th cent. In ancient Greece music theory was mainly concerned with describing different scales (modes) and their emotional character. In more general usage the term theory is used to include the study of acoustics, harmony, and ear training. Analyses of compositions of a particular genre are synthesized into a general system, or reference, against which the individuality of these pieces can be perceived.
Analytic theory, on the other hand, undertakes detailed study of individual pieces. An example is the attempt to assert the superiority of tonal music over other systems by reference to the relationship of the triad to the natural overtone series.
Music theory tended toward this aspect until the 20th cent. It can be prescriptive when it imposes these extramusical contentions to establish an aesthetic norm. Speculative theory engages in reconciling with music certain philosophical observations of man and nature. The discipline is subdivided into what can be called speculative and analytic theory. Theory, in music, discipline involving the construction of cognitive systems to be used as a tool for comprehending musical compositions.
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