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INTRODUCTION

If there is a secret to becoming a good musician it lies in the development of

exceptional aural skills. This course assumes you are a beginner to intermediate

level musician or even an advanced musician who has not taken the time to

develop this skill – either way some basic level of musicianship is assumed.

The title of this course is How to develop big ears in 60 days. A bold statement but

this course represents my trials and tribulations and what worked for me. If I as a

completely ungifted novice when it came to aural skills can develop a good (i.e.

Big!) set of ears by following these simple steps than so can you. If you are like

most people you want to develop this skill as quickly as possible.

If you have read through my site you might be asking how is it possible that this

guy made it through a music conservatorium without developing a good set of

ears. Here is a good analogy I once read: when we are learning the horn our

technical ability develops faster than our ears ability to hear what we are playing

and we end up listening to what is coming out of the horn but is not necessarily

coming from our inner self.

I read an interview with the great Sal Nistico who I am sure was referring to this

same thing when he said sometimes “his fingers start playing me”. There is

another great story where Lester Young is sitting on the tour bus after a Jazz at

the Philharmonic (JATP) concert. An alto player who is not named but I think may

be Sonny Stitt gets up in front of Prez and wails some kind of technically complex

line and asks Prez what he thinks. The Prez responds “that’s great man but can

you sing it?” I love that response. You can develop a great technique without

actually having much to say and much worth people listening to.

So, here goes. The secret is – there is no secret. It’s simply a combination of hard

work, making an honest commitment and lastly repetition, repetition and more

repetition. Everyone progresses at different rates but I have no doubt you will

have improved significantly if you follow this simple course. As I heard Chris

Potter say a couple of times in a Masterclass there is no substitute for putting in

the hours.

Although it has its detractors these days, I have found the rote method of learning

to produce the best results. The intervals will become so familiar to you that

eventually you won’t need to think about them at all.

So, what is rote learning?

Rote learning is a memorization technique based on repetition. The idea is that

one will be able to quickly recall the meaning of the material the more one repeats

it.

To put that in a musical context - the more you listen to the various intervals the

more familiar you will become with those sounds and the easier it will be for you

to recall what you hear.

TOOLS REQUIRED

EAR TRAINING APP

There are some great ear training apps available for tablets and mobile phones

these days. You can read my reviews elsewhere on my site. For this course I

recommend using the My Ear Trainer or The Complete Ear Trainer apps. They are

both FREE, customisable and available for Apple and Android devices. Both have

great stats function which keeps track of your success rate and even lets you put

in your time goals i.e. how much time you want to spend each day practicing. My

personal preference is for The Complete Ear Trainer as I think the sounds are

more realistic. If you are doing these exercises on your PC take a look at Ear

Master Pro which also has built in stats.

HEADPHONES

If you can afford it buy yourself a good quality set of headphones. I recommend

the BOSE noise cancelling headphones – you can see my review on my site. And

yes, I bought them myself i.e. unfortunately no BOSE endorsement. They are

expensive at about $400+AUD but worth it. There are many good choices out

there such as Sony (MDRZX110NC). has a pair for circa $99AUD. I have not tested

them but it shows there are plenty of good alternatives.

WHAT TO PRACTICE AND WHEN?

The advantage of having a good ear training app on your phone or tablet is that

you can practice anywhere anytime. I have provided a comprehensive plan

starting on page 10 which sets out what to practice, when to practice and how

long to practice. I started by using the app on the bus to work in the morning,

during my lunch break and on the bus to home after work. This worked out to be

approximately 3 hours a day.

Here are my observations.

It wasn’t possible to do this amount of ear training when I first started –

your ears ability to hear the intervals seems to get muddled after about 10

minutes when you are starting out. I suspect it’s not unlike jogging or some other

physical exercise where you have to build up your endurance.

I guarantee you will get frustrated and want to give up but keep going. I

find the third session of the day to be the most useful and result producing

although it doesn’t feel like it when you are pulling your hair out at the time.

Start out easy – gradually increase the number of intervals you practice. I

started with ten and now do a minimum of 500 at a time and sometimes when I

want to test myself I set a goal of completing ten thousand intervals over a

weekend whilst maintaining at least a 96% success rate. That works out to about

five hours on Saturday and five hours on Sunday.

There is something quite odd happening when you are doing this much ear

training – I have noticed a physical sensation that your ears are constantly on

alert and highly functioning, it’s hard to explain.

Work on your weaknesses. This is where the advantage of an app with a

stats function comes in. You can look at the stats and see exactly which intervals

you are getting right and which ones you are not so good at. Don’t keep practicing

the ones you are getting more than 90% on…try to get all of your intervals up to

the same standard.

Be patient, persistent and committed. It will happen.

THE PLAN

I have developed a comprehensive practice routine suitable for beginners and

intermediates on page 10.

If you would like me to follow your progress and offer some advice along the way

then follow the steps below. Let’s get started.

MY EAR TRAINER

1. Open up the My Ear Trainer app on your mobile phone or tablet.

2. Click on the settings cog at the top right of the app next to the info icon.

3. Click on “Join course” and enter the course code 3808.

4. Click on the Join button.

5. You will see you have “Joined in Big Ears in Sixty Days!”

6. Scroll down to tempo and tap to open and set the tempo. For beginners I

recommend starting somewhere between 50bpm and 100bpm.

7. Next, select the daily practice goal – be realistic when setting the goal.

There’s no point entering 3 hours if your schedule doesn’t permit. Refer to

the practice routines for a guide.

8. Tick the box “Show results.” This will display your results after each

exercise is finished. You are now set up to start. If you have any problems

shoot me an email and I will help.

9. Tap on the “Intervals” tab. We are going to be working with only seconds at

this point. You should see two selections for seconds – melodic, only

ascending and melodic, only descending. It doesn’t matter which interval

you select to start but make sure you complete an equal number of both

ascending and descending seconds. Personally I found the descending

intervals easier to hear at the start.

RECOGNISING INTERVALS – KEEP IT SIMPLE

I know a lot of people don’t advocate this approach and I can understand why but

if you are a complete beginner than you have to start somewhere. I found it easier

and more useful to associate intervals with sounds and songs rather than getting

caught up on discussing semitones or half steps or whole steps et al.

The songs in the tables below are what I used for distinguishing between minor

seconds and major seconds. There are many more… One other thing I should

point out is that my main focus in any course or lesson I provide is to make it as

easy as possible for the student. What this means is that I don’t always provide

the technically correct enharmonic explanation.

For example, you will notice in my “Intervals by Note” table on page 13 that I

don’t use double flats or sharps where it would be correct to do so. I keep it as

simple as possible at all times.

MINOR AND MAJOR SECONDS

Use the songs in the table below to identify minor and major seconds ascending

(going up) and descending (going down). I have highlighted my personal

favourites.

Interval Ascending Descending

Minor

second

I’m getting sentimental over

you

Bye Bye Blackbird

Fly me to the Moon

Stella by starlight

Joy to the world

Major

second

Just you, Just me

Happy Birthday

There Will Never be Another

You

Mary Had a Little Lamb

Three blind mice

As I mentioned above a lot of people don’t endorse this approach because it’s not

helpful to try and think of intervals in terms of songs when you are on the

bandstand, it’s all happening too quick. This is true and I agree however, what I

have noticed is that you will become so familiar with the intervals through the rote

method that eventually you won’t need to associate an interval with a particular

song. You will automatically be able to identify what the interval is by its sound

within a micro second. But as I also said above beginners have to start

somewhere and this is as good a way as any. This will lay a solid foundation for

when you start practising harmonic ear training or tonality ear training.

THEORY

If you must have the technical explanation for the difference between a minor and

major second ascending and descending, here it is:

A minor second can be described as a semi tone or half step, depending on your

preferred terminology, higher or lower than the tonic i.e. starting note. You could

also think of it as the first tone ascending or descending in a chromatic scale.

Here are some examples of m (minor) seconds and M (major) seconds:

MINOR AND MAJOR THIRDS

Use the songs in the table below to identify minor and major thirds ascending

(going up) and descending (going down).


Minor

third

Brahms Lullaby

The letter – Joe Cocker

Sentimental Journey

Major

third

You can’t always get what you

want – The Rolling Stones

Deer a doe – sound of music

Big Ben clock tower chime and most

elevators in Australia

I believe this interval to be one of the most important intervals you must learn. As

you progress and start learning chords you will come to understand why this

interval is so important.

It immediately sets up the tonality of the chord i.e. major or minor. Perhaps one

of the best tips I can give you for identifying this interval comes from my 8 year

old daughter. She never seems to get it wrong. She simply refers to it as a happy

sound for major or a sad sound for minor. That’s certainly true when you start

listening to chords. It works well for her.

THEORY

Here is the technical explanation for the difference between a minor and major

third ascending and descending:

A minor third can be described as one whole tone and a semi tone above or below

the tonic whilst a major third is two whole tones above or below the tonic.

Here are some examples to help:

FOURTHS, FIFTHS AND OCTAVES

Use the songs in the table below to identify perfect fourths, augmented fourths,

perfect fifths and octaves.


Perfect

fourth

Auld Lang Syne (new year’s

eve)

Mickey Mouse Club

Ice Hockey organ

Augmented

fourth

In a Mellowtone – Ben Webster In a Mellowtone – Ben Webster

Perfect fifth The way you look tonight –

Michael Buble

Star Wars

Octave Willow weep for me Somewhere over the Rainbow – Ben

Webster

Singing in the Rain

Personally I found these intervals to be the easiest to hear and quickly learnt. If

you are a saxophone player starting out, a strong ability to hear these intervals

will set you in good stead for when you start learning the overtone series.

THEORY

Here is the technical explanation for the difference between a perfect fourth,

augmented fourth, perfect fifth and an octave. A perfect fourth is two whole steps

plus a half step above or below the tonic. A perfect fifth is three whole steps plus a

half step above or below the tonic. An octave is the eighth note above or below

the tonic in a major or minor scale.

Here are some examples of each interval to help:

An augmented fourth cuts a major scale perfectly in half.

NB. The purists will argue that a diminished fifth is not the same as an augmented

fourth and whilst they are of course technically correct it’s much easier to work on

the understanding that the sound of each interval is identical.

MINOR AND MAJOR SIXTHS, MINOR AND MAJOR SEVENTHS

Use the songs in the table below to identify minor and major sixths, and minor

and major sevenths.


Minor

sixth

The Entertainer Theme from Love Story

Theme – Miles Davis

Major

sixth

My Bonnie lies over the ocean Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen

Minor

seventh

Theme from Star Trek Star Wars

Major

seventh

Take on me (A-Ha, pop song) I love you (Cole Porter)

I found sevenths to be the trickiest interval to hear and in particular the minor

seventh descending. The good news is the more you practice the interval the

easier it becomes.

Try customising or setting up a specific drill to help. For example I mixed

major sixths (an interval I was comfortable with) with minor sevenths.

That way the minor seventh really stuck out. For major sevenths

ascending I suggest you try and listen for the sound of the note wanting

to resolve up that final half step to the octave. This worked really well for me. If

you need help setting up your own drills let me know.

THEORY

Here is the technical explanation for the difference between minor and major

sixths, and minor and major sevenths.

Here are some examples:

Minor sixths (can be described as a perfect fifth plus a minor second above or

below the tonic)

Major sixths (can be described as a perfect fifth plus a whole tone or step above or

below the tonic)

Minor sevenths (can be described as a perfect fifth plus a minor third above or

below the tonic)

Major sevenths (can be described as a perfect fifth plus a major third above or

below the tonic)

B E G I N N E R S E A R T R A I N I N G P L A N – W E E K B Y W E E K

COMPLETE BEGINNER (NO PREVIOUS EAR TRAINING)

WEEK 1

WHEN MORNING LUNCH NIGHT

WHAT Minor and major

seconds descending

and ascending

Minor and major

seconds descending

and ascending

Minor and major

seconds descending

and ascending

HOW LONG? 10 minutes each

session or until your

ear stops correctly

identifying the pitch –

you will know when

this is happening.

10 minutes each


ear stops correctly


you will know when

this is happening.

20 minutes each

night or until your ear

stops correctly


you will know when

this is happening.

1. Don’t do any more than the allotted time above and don’t rush ahead i.e. stick with

the plan! You need to become completely familiar with the interval you are practising

i.e. absorb and internalise the sound of a minor second and major second ascending

and descending.

2. Try to imagine the sound in your head vividly, as if you are actually singing it or

playing it on your instrument. *Imaginary fingering of the note seems to help.

3. Sing the interval (if you are not at work!!)

4. Remember! The third session of the day will be the most frustrating but in my opinion

the most productive. It seemed to me that my ears were physically tired at the end of

the day and just didn’t want to recognise the pitch during this session. My evening

success rate was much worse than my morning and lunch sessions. However, push

through this session and you will recognise the rewards in the first session of the next

day. Feel free to adjust the sessions if you are a shift worker.

5. Set up a reminder on your phone or tablet so you don’t miss a session – I’ve been

using the reminders and goals function in Google calendar.


WEEK 2


WHAT Minor and major

seconds and thirds

descending and

ascending

Minor and major Thirds

descending and

ascending

Minor and major

seconds and Thirds

descending and

ascending


session or until your ear

stops correctly


you will know when this

is happening.

20 minutes each


stops correctly


you will know when

this is happening.

30 minutes each night

or until your ear stops

correctly identifying

the pitch – you will

know when this is

happening.


WEEK 3


WHAT Perfect fourths, fifths

and octaves

descending and

ascending

Perfect fourths, fifths

and octaves

descending and

ascending

Minor and major

seconds and Thirds

descending and

ascending



stops correctly



is happening.

30 minutes each


ear stops correctly


you will know when

this is happening.





know when this is

happening.


WEEK 4


WHAT Minor and major sixths

and sevenths

descending and

ascending


and octaves

descending and

ascending

Minor and major

seconds and Thirds

descending and

ascending AND


and octaves

descending and

After completing the above program I would take 3-5 days off before returning

to the cycle. You wont lose the gains you have made during the course and your

ears will be completely refreshed and ready to take on the challenge again. If

you have followed the steps outlined above you will notice you have made some

fantastic progress with your ability to hear relative pitch.

I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE BIG EARS IN SIXTY DAYS COURSE AND

SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED YOUR ABILITY TO HEAR MELODIC

INTERVALS.

IF YOU LIKED THIS COURSE WHY NOT TAKE A LOOK AT SOME OF MY

BOOKS IN THE SHOP.

kevleightonmusic.com

ascending



stops correctly



is happening.

45 minutes each


ear stops correctly


you will know when

this is happening.





know when this is

happening.


WEEK 5


WHAT Minor and major sixths

and sevenths

descending and

ascending

Minor and major sixths

and sevenths

descending and

ascending


and octaves

descending and

ascending AND

Minor and major sixths

and sevenths

descending and

ascending



stops correctly



is happening.

60 minutes each


ear stops correctly


you will know when

this is happening.





know when this is

happening.

I N T E R V A L S B Y N O T E

Column1 Tonic minor 2nd major 2nd minor 3rd major 3rd perfect 4th augmented 4th perfect 5th minor 6th perfect 6th minor 7th major 7th Tonic

Ascending C C#/Db D D#/Eb E F F#/Gb G G#/Ab A A#/Bb B C

Descending C B Bb/A# A Ab/G# G Gb/F# F E Eb/D# D Db C

introduction - storage.googleapis.com · i’m getting sentimental over you bye bye blackbird fly...

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