Kenny Snyder

It's Not Rocket Science, You Know Kenny Snyder

It's Not Rocket Science, You Know was written by Kenny Snyder as a response to something he noticed while teaching music in Hawaii. Although some students in his theory classes were music majors, they had somehow missed or overlooked the basics of music. Because of this, Kenny began writing some simple ideas down and those turned into this little book about music. Instead of chapters, It's Not Rocket Science, You Know is separated into conversations. Kenny uses a tone of writing that is humorous in order to pull the reader into these conversations. Along the way, he builds on concepts that are universal without making them boring. Each conversation has moments where Kenny encourages the reader to stop, take out their notebook and practice drawing the subject matter at hand. He stresses the importance of learning how to draw notes and staves and symbols. Kenny feels that knowledge is retained at a much higher rate when it is transferred to paper. In addition to humor and conversational writing, Kenny includes hand-drawn pictures and illustrations to keep the ideas moving forward. This personal touch also creates a casual feel to the material. Along the way, Kenny adds some unique concepts normally not found in a beginner music book, such as learning the Nashville Numbers system, how to use a metronome and designing a lead sheet. All in all, It's Not Rocket Science, You Know is a terrific foundational book for both beginner and advanced music students, or for curious onlookers who are thinking about dabbling into music.