Wassup?

[Big Ears]

Hi,

I've been wrestling with ear training for years but have finally started to make progress. I'm hoping to discuss the process with like minded peeps :)

[kelley]

Hi Big Ears! Welcome to the forums - I look forward to learning more about you and discussing ear training. :)

[ChristopherS]

Great to meet you and to hear you're making progress in your training. Tell us a bit about your musical/audio background! (instruments, training, musical loves & hates, etc.)

[Big Ears]

I've been playing guitar mechanically for years by which I mean I've been dependent on tabs/chord charts. I would like to improve as a musician and as a songwriter. One of the problems is that I can come up with an idea and lose it because I don't have a guitar to hand. Another problem is that by the time I've 'hunt and pecked' my way around chords and notes, I've very often lost the idea I had in the first place. I think (and become more certain as I progress) that a well developed ear will help me relate more quickly and accurately the sound in my head to my instrument.

All progress so far has been with relative pitch but I've heard enough to be a believer that absolute pitch can also be learned even at my advanced age. :)

I like a wide range of music. Rock/Hip Hop/Neo-Soul/Blues/Rock'n'Roll/Stax/Motown/Jazz. I'm always looking for more listening experiences. Listened to a Fado compilation this week - which really brought home how much my theory comprehension has come on when coupled with ear training. I'm intrigued by Mariachi music and am trying hear more of it than the odd film soundtrack!


Musical hates? The Simon Cowell Karaoke singer production line - technically accomplished but utterly without soul (Leona Lewis/Alexandra Burke) or an original musical voice (the aforementioned plus Susan Boyle/Girls Aloud). Amy Winehouse/Pete Docherty.

Think I'd better stop now.

[ChristopherS]

Your description of your guitar playing really reminds me of my progress with piano - after a few years spent learning from sheet music I've turned to trying to develop my understanding of theory and ability to play by ear, with the ultimate aim of being able to sit down and play whatever I hear in my head. I find it really liberating to develop an arrangement on the fly from a lead sheet, and there's something really intimate and instinctive about tying your expression through the instrument to what you imagine in your mind, rather than notes on a page...

I just had to look up the 'Fado' genre! Sounds really interesting, I look forward to checking that out this week. I love discovering new types of music, so thanks for the suggestion :)

Great to have you with us on the forums.