Familiarizing Yourself with Musical Notes
Listen to each note repeatedly. Choose a singular note that you wish to learn. Start with something simple, like an A or C. Play the note over and over until you begin to memorize its sound by rote. This is the raw form of memorization—learning how a particular note sounds and absorbing as much of its auditory properties as you can.
Ascribe other qualities to the note. Instead of simply hearing the sound of the note, try “seeing” or even “feeling” it. Does the note evoke a certain emotion or sensation in you? Does it remind you of a color or give you an impression of some type of scene? Focus on isolating these characteristics of the note. Your pitch will begin to improve once you start to develop a creative musical memory. Musicians commonly refer to this type of practice as “colorful listening,” or making use of other sensory features to cement a sound's place in the listener's memory. As a broad example, minor notes often have the effect of eliciting feelings of melancholy in listeners, whereas major swells are linked with impressions of excitement, joy, and triumph.
Associate the note with another sound. Think of other, non-musical sounds that the note reminds you of. Making associations with like sounds can help solidify the tonal structure of the note in your mind; a low E or F flat note, for example, may conjure images of an ocean liner sounding its foghorn. Musicians who use this mnemonic device allow notes to form vivid depictions in their minds, making them more memorable as a result. Since you will rarely hear a singular note played without harmony in a piece, placing the note in the context of its root position chord can also help you learn to distinguish it.
Learn the variations of the note. Distinguishing pitch largely involves being able to tell which notes have a higher or lower frequency than others, so learn to recognize the same notes in different octaves in addition to the general sound of the note itself, as well as the sharp and flat modes of each note. If you familiarize yourself with these variations, you'll have a better ear for when the note has been hit exactly and when it is a little too high or low. ”Sharp” refers to notes that are roughly a half step higher than their base frequency, while “flat” notes are perceived as slightly low. Many mistakes in musical pitch occur because of a lack of familiarity with a note's deviations.
Training Yourself to Identify Notes
Train yourself to pick out 1 note at a time. Once you've begun learning the various notes in a scale, pick one note to discern among others. Have a friend play notes in no particular order up and down a keyboard, and keep your ear primed for the note you're listening for. Call out whenever you think you hear the note and verify whether you were right by checking the location of the key that was pressed. Focus on learning 1 or 2 notes at a time. This way you won't get overwhelmed, and it will make learning other keys and modes easier later on.
Identify notes at random. As a more advanced variation of the previous exercise, have your friend slowly play notes at random and try to name each note as it is played. This is an extremely challenging form of training that requires you to have a practical knowledge of the sonic profile of each note. Challenging yourself to identify notes on the spot will greatly reinforce your recall. Add sharp and flat notes once you're able to call out each note with continual accuracy.
Form an understanding of chord structure. A chord is a complex, harmonious sound comprised of several notes being played together in a complementary key. With a sophisticated ear, you should be able to name not only a given chord being played but also the individual notes that make it up. Practice chord work the way you would pick out single notes on a keyboard, calling out a chord when you hear it or recognizing different chords that are being played erratically. Chord recognition is a tough task that can typically only be accomplished by more experienced ears, as the listener must be able to isolate the single notes from a chord as well as identify the chord itself.
Listen for notes from unlikely sources. Pay close attention to the everyday sounds around you. Many odd noises will closely resemble clearer, more sustained musical notes. The next time you hear a car horn, a stray shout, or the chime of an alarm, try to place it as near a note as you can in your mind. This will be easier if you've been making mental associations between musical notes and non-musical sounds, and will enhance your working knowledge at the same time. Take a tour of your home and identify the notes produced by your cell phone, the buttons on the microwave, the garbage disposal, clanking silverware, etc. The term “note” usually refers to a focused sound that maintains a consistent frequency, therefore there are always notes being generated in day-to-day life, even if they're outside of a musical context. Identifying the pitch of everyday sounds is called absolute pitch and can help you develop perfect pitch. However, keep in mind that sounds in absolute pitch are microtones, meaning they are in between the 12 pitches used in Western music since these sounds are not tuned in equal temperament the way instruments are.
Learning to Reproduce Notes at Will
Sing different notes. Strengthen the connection between the ear and distinct tones by replicating notes using your voice. Take a few minutes a day to sing a selection of notes as accurately as you can, trying to form a clear “image” of the note in your mind and match it closely. Just as you've come to be able to recognize notes as they're played, you should now attempt to apply that skill in reverse, producing a designated note on command. Don't be embarrassed if you can't sing. Practice alone to get rid of the nerves of singing in the presence of others. Learning to sing the right pitch also serves as a kind of fundamental vocal training.
Sound out each note on various instruments. Because pitch is not a concrete characteristic of sound but of the ear that perceives it, it can be helpful to acquaint yourself with the different ways a note may sound when played on different instruments. Each instrument will feature unique vibrational traits that influence the tonal quality of the notes it produces, but the notes themselves will remain distinguishable, as they are defined by their basic frequency and sound the same regardless of tone. Play the same scale on a piano, a guitar, a flute, and a violin and consider the similarities and differences in the way each note is formed. Since each instrument has different timbral qualities, this may be difficult at first but is excellent practice.
Have someone quiz you. Instruct your friend to recite a series of random notes, then sing each note back to them. Quicken the pace of the call-and-response as you become more proficient at producing notes. Increase the difficulty of the exercise by incorporating flat and sharp variations. Keep an electronic tuner on hand to give you instant feedback on the accuracy of the notes you're trying to hit.
Practice. Call upon your newfound knowledge of the sonic properties of musical notes to improve your technical mastery. Drilling yourself on picking out musical notes will be of little use if you don't apply that knowledge in musical creation or performance. There is no substitute for lots and lots of practice. In addition to exercising your ear, starting drilling yourself on observing the progression of notes in songs on the radio, mentally “playing” sheet music and attempting to play songs by ear on an instrument after only a listen or two.
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