Reddit mentions of The Complete Musician: An Integrated Approach to Theory, Analysis, and Listening

There's also a free, Berklee Intro to Music Theory course on edX. It says enrollment is closed, but I'm still able to view the lessons once I log in.

I'm new to learning about music as well, and this book has been very helpful: How Music Works. It's written very conversationally, not too technical, with great explanations of core concepts.

Also picked up The Complete Musician, which is very technical.

For writing software, Muse Score is free.

I'd also recommend getting a midi keyboard as well, if you don't already have one.

You have to connect harmony to form. Think of chord progressions by the sections they underpin. Steven Laitz uses the concept of the "phrase model".

Here's the phrase model: T–PD–D(–T)

Laitz says:

>The harmonic motion of tonic (T), through pre-dominant (PD), to dominant and tonic at the cadence (D or D-T) guides a phrase from its beginning to its cadence and is called the phrase model.

>Although the phrase model can occupy any number of measures, four measures (or some multiple of four) is common, as seen in Example 9.12. Here, a balanced motion is clearly felt as the harmonic rhythm shifts once every measure. There is much room for variation in this model, however, and while the order of presentation of harmonic functions (T-PD-D-T) remains the same, their relative durations may vary considerably. For instance, the opening tonic often occupies at least as much time as the pre-dominant and dominant combined. Example 9.13 extends the tonic for three and a third measures, with the PD and D occupying barely more than one beat. (Notice that the bass and soprano begin at the interval of a tenth; then, in parallel motion, they descend by step together and then return to the root-position tonic harmony, making the expansion of tonic explicit.)

>In Example 9.12 the phrase model closed with an authentic cadence. Example 9.13 closes with a half cadence. These two basic models are represented schematically in Example 9.14. Models 3 and 4, which close with a half cadence, are as grammatically complete as the first two models, yet their harmony implies that the piece will eventually resolve the tension of the dominant.

>Notice how in models 2-4 it takes much more time for the tonic to move to the pre-dominant than for the pre-dominant to move to the dominant. It is common for the tonic to occupy two or even three times more time than the pre-dominant. Example 9.15 (closely resembling model 3) illustrates a four- measure phrase with five and a half beats of tonic and one and a half beats of dominant, but only half a beat of pre-dominant. (3rd edition, 200-202)

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Long story short, use whatever chords you want be make sure you have a beginning (what we call an "initiating function" in the theory of formal functions), a middle ("medial function"), and some kind of cadence to bring the thing to a close ("concluding function"). Tension builds in the PD–D part of the phrase model and is released in concluding T part.

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Here's a short piece I wrote in the locrian mode. The piece starts in earnest in m.10. We have a B° tonic (i°). It elaborates that chord for a bit with some medial material, but the main goal is to reach scale degree ♭5 in the melody. After that, it comes back down with a i°^(6/4) ♭V i° cadence. So overall, the phrase model there is T–D–T. You might be able to make a case for T–PD–D–T if you consider the C chords in bars 11-12. It doesn't really matter for me.

But you can also consider the entirety of bars 1-25 one huge T function. The progression in bars 26-49 is meant to take us from the T area to the PD area, with plenty of ♭II's and iv's along the way. In 49, we have a Em7 (iv7), which is the large-scale PD of the piece, leading to F (♭V) in bar 50, the large-scale D of the piece. This leads to B° (i°), the T that closes the phrase model.

Function|Measure Numbers

-:|:-:
T|1-25
PD|26-49
D|50
T|51-52

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Here's a goofy little piece I wrote for one of our composition challenges. It's in G lydian. Bars 1-4 go T–PD–D (G–A–D respectively), then 5-8/9 are T–PD–D–T (G–A–D–G). These are smaller-scale phrase models in the larger context of the piece:

Function|Measure Numbers

-:|:-:
T|1-9
PD|10-15
D|16
T|17-18

10-13 is a PD function interrupted: Bm–Em–A (iii–vi–II) is the PD part, D (V) is the D part. Then, 14-18 is the closure of the circuit: Bm–Em–A–G/D–D–G (iii–vi–II–I^(6/4)–V–I).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuWMSMvvsa0

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Dude, your hooktheory book is a complete garbage, I'm not surprised that you learned everything wrong. I even told you the name of the youtube channel... how ignorant can a person be on reddit?

Check any real music theory books

https://www.amazon.com/Tonal-Harmony-Stefan-Kostka/dp/125944709X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1538029216&sr=1-1&keywords=tonal+harmony+kostka&dpID=41v9WBjdbJL&preST=_SX218_BO1,204,203,200_QL40_&dpSrc=srch

https://www.amazon.com/Complete-Musician-Integrated-Approach-Listening/dp/0199347093/ref=pd_sim_14_16?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0199347093&pd_rd_r=4a1cee19-c21d-11e8-bcaa-d5dbd61d2792&pd_rd_w=N7ADP&pd_rd_wg=8dbTF&pf_rd_i=desktop-dp-sims&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_p=56838e6b-66d4-41e0-a762-743f1a1a628a&pf_rd_r=3YXER0X7XFGE6FM96NJ8&pf_rd_s=desktop-dp-sims&pf_rd_t=40701&psc=1&refRID=3YXER0X7XFGE6FM96NJ8

https://www.amazon.com/Musicians-Guide-Theory-Analysis-Second/dp/0393930815/ref=pd_sim_14_32?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0393930815&pd_rd_r=4a1cee19-c21d-11e8-bcaa-d5dbd61d2792&pd_rd_w=N7ADP&pd_rd_wg=8dbTF&pf_rd_i=desktop-dp-sims&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_p=56838e6b-66d4-41e0-a762-743f1a1a628a&pf_rd_r=3YXER0X7XFGE6FM96NJ8&pf_rd_s=desktop-dp-sims&pf_rd_t=40701&psc=1&refRID=3YXER0X7XFGE6FM96NJ8

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to see what people in England and USA use (Germany and North/East Europe use slightly different system).

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Also, there doesn't exist such thing as progression without a tonic, that's why your progression is wrong when you try to analyse the key. One of your chords is I or i (Im in another notation system). And progressions in minor use flexible scale degrees, that's why such tables can't be made or they will have to include several different chords.

You don't really need the first book, but it couldn't hurt. The Aldwell/Schachter/Cadwallader is a very good tonal theory book and I would recommend. I can also highly recommend The Complete Musician by Laitz, but it's a very hefty book at around 900 pages.