Q: you say that an understanding of music theory is not necessary to the process of creating music, but it seems to me that there's a great dissonance between "just touch the instrument and make sounds," and a functioning understanding of different notes, chords, and scales and how they relate to one another
A: "music theory" means nothing if you can't hear it. start experimenting, and you will start to hear everything. also, plot twist, there are as many "theory"s about music as there are stars in the sky. your best bet is to fall in love with music in a way that is just right for you. also literacy is legit too if you want ppl to play your charts, or play other ppls charts