Just quickly announcing a special offer with our newsletter, Merry Knell DIYers: a free music theory cheat sheet that coves the important information in a traditional college semester of Music Theory I!

This cheat sheet covers basic notation, scales, minor scales, intervals, key signatures/Circle of Fifths/Fourths, chord formulas, chord progressions, chord inversions, and various related info to give you the context to understand ALL of that!

Whether you’re a beginner musician or an experienced songwriter or composer looking for a refresher, this Music Theory Cheat Sheet will help you start playing and keep you theory skills sharp for years to come!

Get it for free by signing up for our newsletter on the bottom of most of our website pages or here at our newsletter sign-up page: https://www.merryknell.com/page/706911

We have made great strides in updating the Merry Knell DIY Music Academy website and have several new pages to introduce you to!

The Basics:

Most websites have a home page, an about page, a contact page, and a blog page that are all self-explanatory. We have all four of those pages for your curiosity and viewing!

The Merry Knell DIYer Newsletter:

On every page of our website, there is a sign-up to join our newsletter: The Merry Knell DIYer (we are very thorough). Once you sign up, you will receive a link to download a free Music Theory Cheat Sheet, which covers the majority of information one would learn in a typical college Music Theory I class:

• Basic Notation (including note names, treble and bass clef, piano notes, & accidentals)

• Scales & key signatures (Major scales, whole & half-step patterns, & the 3 minor scales)

• Intervals (Major, minor, perfect, augmented, diminished & the tritone)

• Chords (triads, 7th chords, chord tonalities, inversions, and common progressions)

• Common reference visuals: (Circle of Fifths & Fourths, etc.)

All this information on a handy 2-page PDF could be yours, all you gotta do is sign up for our newsletter, The Merry Knell DIYer!

Pages of Interest:

We also have Merry Knell-specific site pages for you to enjoy!

• Online Music Lessons:

  • Learn to read music and related music theory for performance purposes

  • Learn to write & create music and the related music theory for that to become a songwriter or composer

  • Either or both of the above learning opportunities come with individual lessons with Mary Lemanski.

  • Visit the Online Music Lessons Page to learn more about Music Lessons and enroll: https://www.merryknell.com/online-music-lessons 

• Music Business Coaching:

  • Learn how to manage and tackle the business side of your music career yourself with Music Business Coaching!

  • Define your brand, artist mission, and direction

  • Plan music releases from any stage in the process with guidance from Mary Lemanski

  • Promote your music, whether it's a new release or reminding your followers of your pre-existing work. Learn to feel confident with your own marketing & promotion!

  • Understand royalties, licensing, merch, performance-based or other income

  • Make or strengthen your music business systems to keep your career moving how you want it to!

  • Visit the Online Music Business Coaching Page to learn more and enroll: https://www.merryknell.com/music-business-services 

• Music Business Services:

  • Want the business stuff handled for you? Merry Knell DIY Music Academy is partnered with Cyberpunk Web Marketing and Virtual Assistant Services to do business and administrative tasks for you!

  • Music business and administrative tasks can be easy and even enjoyable for some artists, but the time available to get these tasks done can cut into your time making your art; let Cyberpunk Web Marketing and Virtual Assistant Services do it for you!

  • Visit our Music Business Services page to learn more and sign up: https://www.merryknell.com/music-business-services

• Musician Tour & Travel Planning:

  • Taking your music on the road can be exciting—but coordinating the travel can quickly become a full-time job

  • Merry Knell DIY Music Academy is partnered with Cyberpunk Travel to offer travel planning and booking assistance for independent musicians of all career stages

  • Visit our Musician Tour and Travel Planning Page to learn more or sign up: https://www.merryknell.com/musician-tour-travel-planning 

What's Next: The Auditorium:

We've made progress making most of the basic website functional, but the most exciting feature is being created next!

We're building The Auditorium to serve as an online community for you! Post on forums, interact with your fellow DIYers, find and start collaborations, share knowledge, and build the Merry Knell community of your dreams with each other!

Thank you DIYers for your patience as we build this academy with accessibility and with the DIY-attitude in mind. We are making this for you and appreciate all your patience and support!

Greetings all DIY Musicians!

As we continue our work revamping and updating the Merry Knell DIY Music Academy website, we are launching this blog in the meantime to give you all updates, news with Merry Knell DIY Music Academy, music & business tips, and highlights from the Merry Knell DIY Music Academy Podcast (check back with us soon for more information on that)!

We will update this blog at least twice a month (or more!) so stick around and check in with us on Fridays for the latest updates!

What is Merry Knell DIY Music Academy?

• Imagine being able to pick up a piece of music and being able to read the notes and teach it to yourself.

• All those great songs you come up with in your head? You can make them a reality.

• Those 500 songs you spent the last 10 years in your basement recording; you can share them with the world and possibly even make money from them!

Merry Knell DIY Music Academy can help you learn the knowledge & skills necessary to achieve your personal and career-related music goals!

Founded by Mary Lemanski, vocalist/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist/music business professional with experience in writing and performing music. Mary has been a background vocalist on a GRAMMY-nominated® Contemporary Blues Album and a #1 Billboard® World Music Album. Her certifications include a bachelor's degree in Music/Business Administration with a concentration in music composition from Millikin University, a certification in audio engineering from the Conservatory of Recording Arts & Sciences and an MBA in e-Business from the University of Phoenix. Mary is a member of the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP), The Society of Composers & Lyricists (SCL), and The Recording Academy. Mary combines the technique, expression, and performance practices from classical musicians with modern teaching methods to give her students a well-rounded music education. She caters each lesson to the individual needs and interests of the student, while giving them a strong technical foundation and fostering their love of music.

Have you always wanted to learn how to read music? Do you know how to read music, but would like to learn how to write songs? Do you write songs, but don't know what to do next to get them into the ears of your potential millions of fans?

Merry Knell DIY Music Academy is for YOU! We believe in making quality music and music business education accessible for all. Join us today and make your mark on the world!