Ear Training
As musicians, it’s important that we be able to hear notes accurately as quickly as possible. To accomplish this, we must train our ears.
We must have a reference tune handy for every interval, so you will feel that interval as unmistakably as you feel the beginning of Happy Birthday (which is a Major 2nd, by the way).
Below is a list of reference tunes and exercises I used to pass collegiate Skills classes.
Reference Tunes:
| Interval: | Reference Tune: Ascending |
| minor 2nd | – Jaws Theme |
| Major 2nd | – Happy Birthday – First two notes of major/minor scale |
| minor 3rd | – Hey Jude – Descending sol-mi on major chord |
| Major 3rd | – Doorbell – Major chord |
| Perfect 4th | – Here Comes the Bride – Under Pressure |
| Augmented 4th/Diminished 5th; Tritone | – The Simpsons Theme |
| Perfect 5th | – Star Wars Main Theme – Game of Thrones |
| minor 6th | – In My Life (The Beatles) – Waltz in C-sharp minor, Op.64 No. 2 (Chopin) |
| Major 6th | – NBC Theme – Princess Leia’s Theme (Star Wars) |
| minor 7th | – The Winner Takes It All, chorus (ABBA) |
| Major 7th | – Take On Me, chorus (A-ha) |
| Perfect octave (8th) | – Over the Rainbow |