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invisiblewasp
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Joined: 25 Sep 2023
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 Posted: Sun Oct 01, 2023 6:19 pm Post subject: Ear Training Advice? |
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Greetings, musical adventurer! I'm on a journey to master notes and chords. Have any fun games or tricks? I'm into ToneScholar (https://tonescholar.com), which focuses on playful learning, not flashy trumpet skills. Still, I'm determined to master both listening and playing, even if practice is as rare as a unicorn sighting. Your insights are like golden treasures in my quest for musical excellence!
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Brassnose
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| Posted: Sun Oct 01, 2023 8:48 pm Post subject: |
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I have recently picked up (again) practicing with a drone. At least for me, this is extremely helpful and much better than just playing against a tuning app and really helps my listening and intonation skills while playing.
(Anyone has a recommendation for a good drone app?).
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JayKosta
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| Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2023 4:58 am Post subject: Re: Ear Training Advice? |
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| invisiblewasp wrote: | | ... even if practice is as rare as a unicorn sighting. ... |
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For most of us, on-going practice is needed to acquire really 'deep memory' for skills such as that.
Short term understanding of the skills can be done with occasional practice, but that often quickly fades without regular use.
I suggest daily practice sessions, even if only for 15 minutes ...
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Steve A
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| Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2023 5:29 am Post subject: |
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| I don't think there's a better ear training exercise for trumpet players than sight singing. |
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kehaulani
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| Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2023 6:03 am Post subject: |
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| Steve A wrote: | | I don't think there's a better ear training exercise for trumpet players than sight singing. |
And ear training. I think they go hand-in-hand.
Also practice hearing, then playing/identifying pitches on your instrument. And taking familiar songs, or song fragments, and playing them transposed in all keys helps the ear-horn coordination.
Regarding finding "games" on the internet, I'm not dismissing them. I just learned the more traditional way and can't help you with suggestions.
FWIW, I used to trade playing and notating chords/passages of complex to atonal harmonies with a fellow arranger, so I know this route works.
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Last edited by kehaulani on Mon Oct 02, 2023 2:14 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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cgaiii
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| Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2023 1:15 pm Post subject: |
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You might try Functional Ear Trainer
https://www.miles.be/
You can get apps for Apple, Android and Windows.
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GizB
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| Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2023 6:55 am Post subject: |
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I have a pretty good ear developed by learning jazz melodies and solos - without charts. Also playing in bands where nobody reads. I grew up playing in groups sitting around a record player learning parts. For soloing and playing in dance bands, a good ear is as indispensible as good reading chops.
To master chords, get a keyboard and start transcribing tunes. I started out picking out songs from the Chicago sketch scores by Hansen, which are pretty darn accurate. Not only did I learn how to build a 7#9 chord (among many others!), I also learned how to voice it with 3 horns, an arranging skill which has proved invaluable.
Learning tunes and solos by ear, and then transcribing them, will prove far more useful and FUN than playing ear training games. Think of this process as a musical puzzle to be sussed out and refined. I'm convinced that this and sight transposing will help stave off Alzheimers. |
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Chris OHara
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kehaulani
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| Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2023 7:48 am Post subject: |
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| GizB wrote: | | To master chords, get a keyboard and start transcribing tunes. I started out picking out songs from the Chicago sketch scores by Hansen |
GizB, to which "Hansen" book do you refer?
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GizB
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| Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2023 8:41 am Post subject: |
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Charles Hansen Educational Music and Books published a number of sketch scores in the '70s. They were just that - scores done in sketch format with melodies, backgrounds, horn parts and chords - and all done with reasonable accuracy - head and shoulders above near-worthless P/V/G songbooks.
They did all the Chicago albums through X - no Carnegie Hall but A Song for Richard and His Friends is included in a Hansen Chicago Anthology (in 2 volumes). They also had a Herbie Hancock sketch score (Headhunters, Thrust, Manchild, and several jazz tunes such as Goodbye to Childhood done as piano solos), Quincy Jones, and Shaft. They turn up regularly on eBay at decent prices. |
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Craig Swartz
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| Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2023 8:48 am Post subject: |
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| Steve A wrote: | | I don't think there's a better ear training exercise for trumpet players than sight singing. |
I agree. And to that, I'd add: Start playing by "ear". As much as you can, and in multiple keys.
Another game I played with students before I retired, and in the college studio is to play a tone and have the student repeat if back to me as fast as possible. I'd also encourage students in the band to pair off and do it between eacb other. As they get better at being accurate, start playing short melodic snippets.
It's always bothered me a bit when very fine players can not just jump in on a melody without knowing/asking what key it's in. For some reason I was able to do this automatically as a kid, never even gave it a thought. Learning tunes right off of records, no sheet music involved. |
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kehaulani
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| Posted: Tue Oct 03, 2023 9:12 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: | | It's always bothered me a bit when very fine players cannot just jump in on a melody without knowing/asking what key it's in. |
Strange things happen. I have a friend who changed from a major in music to something else because he was so poor in sight singing/ear training and yet he had a career of 40+ years playing flute in the Philadelphia Orchestra.
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invisiblewasp
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| Posted: Wed Dec 06, 2023 3:54 pm Post subject: |
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| Craig Swartz wrote: | | Steve A wrote: | | I don't think there's a better ear training exercise for trumpet players than sight singing. |
I agree. And to that, I'd add: Start playing by "ear". As much as you can, and in multiple keys.
Another game I played with students before I retired, and in the college studio is to play a tone and have the student repeat if back to me as fast as possible. I'd also encourage students in the band to pair off and do it between eacb other. As they get better at being accurate, start playing short melodic snippets.
It's always bothered me a bit when very fine players can not just jump in on a melody without knowing/asking what key it's in. For some reason I was able to do this automatically as a kid, never even gave it a thought. Learning tunes right off of records, no sheet music involved. |
Thanks for the help! While exploring the ToneScholar app, I came across an article that explores functional ear training. Do you think this approach is as effective as the one you recommended? The article is available for viewing at this link: https://tonescholar.com/blog/functional-ear-training-explained.
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Craig Swartz
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| Posted: Thu Dec 07, 2023 7:57 am Post subject: |
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Personally, I'd think anything you do to "exercise" your musical ear would be better and help with improvements than just reacting to what you hear after you have already produced the tone.
There's another series on CD (still available, I think) called "Perfect Pitch Ear Training" by Dave Burge. It's been around for decades and used to be the entire back page ad on the International Musician.
Site is: EarTraining.com ,
Someone gave me a set years ago but I never needed it. I could always pick out pitch once I started playing cornet at about age 9. My horn-playing older brother as well. Never been able to figure out why- we just could/can.
Others might chime in on the Burge course.
Good luck. |
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