Guitar & Musician Forums

Do you use any theory at all or do you just go with what sounds good and use theory to explain why after the fact? Do you find that using too much theory can stop you creating?

I am unsure how much I should be using music theory for composing so interested to hear your thoughts.

I think theory can be useful in compositions when you are looking to go somewhere that might not be diatonic. Or you are somewhere trying to get back to somewhere. But the majority of popular music is ultimately simple chord patterns and you should not get too bogged down by theory when composing in this style.