[voidhorse]

Totally. I'm self-taught in this area and I feel like the biggest obstacle for self-study is that the basic concepts are often passed over too quickly (like simply the idea of using phase/the unit circle to represent oscillations, and how all that relates to frequency and period). I recently sat down and tried to make sure I really understood the mathematical modeling part of the whole business and it brings a lot of clarity when tackling more advanced topics. This is kind of true for self-studying any mathematical domain generally. It's easy to pass over the "entry-level" or foundational stuff quickly because on the surface it seems straightforward, but getting those fundamental ideas crystal clear and burned into your brain is absolutely crucial if you're going to comprehend anything that follows.

[atoav]

This is exactly what I think. The basics need to be understood. That doesn't necessarily mean they need to be understood first tho. People that learn synthesizers are first and foremost interested in creating cool sounds, so the best strategy to teach them the (for some: boring) basics, is IMO to repeatedly overwhelm them a little and then step back and explain things throughly.