How to find out if you have an ear for music. Musical ear: our misconceptions

We often ask ourselves the question: “Do I have hearing”? Looking into the blue TV screens, we see a variety of vocal competitions. And sometimes the winners of these competitions don’t even have music education, they just have hearing and a voice, and the rest comes with it.

People who cannot distinguish a false note from a real one are usually considered musically untalented. Those who cannot pick out a melody by ear. First of all, sing any melody into the recorder and ask a couple of friends to listen to it. Your friends should be completely honest. If they say that you don't "hit" the notes, then most likely you have no hearing. But it doesn't matter. Remember that hearing can always be developed.

The next step is to go to a professional. This person must sing and play himself. He is the one who can give you the first answers to your questions and help you understand what exactly you need to work on in order to develop your hearing.

The big problem is that hearing is needed in order to play musical instruments. You will simply need to hear where you are playing correctly and where you are making mistakes.

Determining if there is a rumor

Currently, there are several ways to check whether ear for music or not.

• Ask someone who can play the piano to play you one note. At the same time, you do not see which key the person played. Remember this note by ear. After pressing the piano keys yourself, find this key. If you were able to find the same note, then you have hearing.
• How to check if a child has hearing? Children are tested for hearing by clapping their hands. Clap the melody with your hands, just not the simplest one, and ask the child to repeat it.
• Take a pencil or pen in your hands. Your friend should tap out any rhythm at intervals of five to eight seconds. You must repeat this rhythm with great precision. Pauses and duration should be the same.

How to find out if there is a rumor in a more accurate way?

If you can already play the piano yourself, then the “music test” is suitable for you. They play you one sound after another in the octave where you feel comfortable singing. And you must “get” in unison with the sounds that you hear.

After the tasks described above, you can make the task more difficult for yourself. Notes are played for you, and you must write them down. music notebook. This is the clearest way to determine the level of development of your hearing. But don’t worry, over time there won’t be a single mistake in your notebook.

The most important thing is not to be upset if your ear for music is not perfect right now.

Always work on your improvement. You should always remember that almost all vocal stars developed their abilities through long and hard work.

Musical ear is a set of abilities necessary for composing, performing and actively perceiving music. Musical ear implies a high subtlety of perception of individual musical elements or qualities musical sounds(pitch, volume, timbre), and functional connections between them in piece of music(modal sense, sense of rhythm).

There is a widespread belief that an ear for music is something unique, a gift, given to a person from birth. After all, he can sing, play music, and in general, he is, in a sense, the chosen one.

How many people experience a feeling of inferiority when it comes to music, declaring: “a bear stepped on my ear.”

Among various types musical hearing, identified according to various criteria, the most important are:

Absolute pitch - the ability to determine the absolute height of musical sounds without comparing them with a standard;

Relative hearing - the ability to determine and reproduce pitch relationships in melody, chords, intervals, etc.;

Inner hearing - the ability to clearly mentally imagine (for example, from musical notation or from memory) individual sounds, melodic and harmonious structures, entire pieces of music;

Intonation hearing is the ability to hear the expression of music, to reveal the communication structures embedded in it.

The development of musical ear is dealt with by a special discipline - solfeggio, but musical ear actively develops primarily in the process of musical activity.

People hear music differently at different ages

This is true. A child is able to distinguish sound with a frequency of up to 30,000 vibrations per second, but in a teenager (up to twenty years old) this figure is 20,000, and by the age of sixty it decreases to 12,000. Good music Center emits a signal with a frequency of up to 25,000 vibrations per second. That is, people over sixty will no longer be able to appreciate all its advantages; they simply will not hear the entire breadth of the range of sounds.

It doesn't matter at what age you start training your hearing.

Wrong. American researchers have found that the highest percentage of people with absolute pitch is observed in those who began studying music between 4 and 5 years of age. And among those who started studying music after the age of 8, there are almost no people with absolute pitch.

Men and women hear music the same way

In fact, women hear better than men. The range of frequencies perceived by the female ear is much wider than that of men. They perceive high-pitched sounds more accurately, distinguish tones and intonations better. In addition, women's hearing does not become dull until the age of 38, while in men this process begins at the age of 32.

Having an ear for music does not depend on the language a person speaks

Wrong. This was proven by researchers at the University of California by comparing data from 115 American and 88 Chinese music students. Chinese is a tonal language. This is the name of a group of languages ​​in which, depending on intonation, the same word can take on several (up to a dozen) meanings. English language- not tonal.

The subjects were examined absolute pitch. They had to distinguish sounds that differed in frequency by only 6%. The results are impressive. 60% of Chinese passed the test of absolute pitch and only 14% of Americans. The researcher explained this by saying that Chinese more melodic, and the Chinese from birth get used to distinguishing larger number sound frequencies. Thus, if a person’s language is musical - with high probability he will also have an absolute ear for music.

A melody heard at least once is stored in our memory for a lifetime.

This is true. American scientists have discovered an area of ​​the cerebral cortex responsible for musical memories. This is the same auditory area of ​​the cerebral cortex that is responsible for the perception of music. It turns out that it is enough for us to hear a melody or song at least once, as it is already stored in this auditory zone. After this, even if we do not hear the melody or song we listened to, the auditory zone is still able to extract it from its “archives” and play it in our brain “from memory”.

The only question is how deeply this melody is hidden. Favorite and frequently heard songs are stored in short-term memory. And melodies heard a long time ago or heard rarely are stored in the “closets” of long-term memory. However, some event or sound sequence can suddenly cause our memory to retrieve these forgotten melodies from its “bins” and play them in our brain.

An ear for music is inherited

This opinion has been around for a long time and is widespread. But only recently have scientists been able to scientifically substantiate it. Researchers have found that people without musical hearing have less white matter in the inferior frontal gyrus of the right hemisphere than those who perceive and reproduce melodies well. It is possible that this physiological feature is genetically determined.

Animals have no ear for music

Not certainly in that way. They just hear music differently. Animals perceive many more sound frequencies. And if people are able to pick up up to 30,000 vibrations per second, then dogs, for example, register sound with a frequency of 50,000 to 100,000 vibrations, that is, they even pick up ultrasound.

Although animals have a sense of tact, our pets cannot perceive melody. That is, they do not combine chord combinations of sounds into a specific sequence called a melody. Animals perceive music only as a set of sounds, and some of them are regarded as signals from the animal world.

An ear for music is a gift from birth and cannot be developed.

Wrong. Those who entered music school They probably remember that they were asked not only to sing, but also to tap out the melody (for example, with a pencil on the table top). This is explained simply. The teachers wanted to assess whether the applicant had a sense of tact. It turns out that it is the sense of tact that is given (or not given) to us from birth, and it cannot be developed. And if a person doesn’t have it, then music teachers won’t be able to teach him anything.

By the way, the percentage of people who lack a sense of tact is very small. And everything else can be taught. Including developing an ear for music. There would be a desire.

An ear for music is rare

Anyone who claims this is mistaken. In fact, any person who can speak and perceive speech has it. After all, in order to speak, we must distinguish sounds by pitch, volume, timbre and intonation. It is these skills that are included in the concept of musical ear. That is, almost all people have an ear for music. The only question is what type of musical ear do they have? Absolute or internal?

The highest stage of development of musical ear is absolute pitch. It is revealed only as a result of playing music (playing a musical instrument). For a long time It was believed that it could not be developed, but now methods for developing absolute pitch are known.

The lowest level of hearing development is internal hearing, uncoordinated with the voice. A person with such hearing can distinguish melodies and reproduce them from memory, but not sing.

The absence of musical hearing is called the clinical level of hearing development. Only 5% of people have it.

Those who have an ear for music can sing well

This is true, but only partly. To sing well, it is not enough to have an ear for music. You also need to be able to control your voice and vocal cords. And this is a skill that is acquired through learning.

Almost every person can hear falsehood in singing, but not everyone can sing clearly themselves. Moreover, it often seems to those who sing that they are singing without falsehood, but those around them can see all their mistakes. This is explained by the fact that every person listens to himself with his inner ear and, as a result, hears something completely different from what others hear. So a novice performer may well not notice that he is not hitting the notes.

In fact, in order to sing well, it is enough to have just a harmonic ear. This level of hearing development is considered one of the lowest. This is the name given to the ability to hear a melody and reproduce it with the voice. And yet, its development is possible even in the initial absence of such ability. That is, 95% of people can play music and achieve results. Moreover, the more you study music, the more your ear for music will develop. Up to the absolute - there are no limits to perfection. The main thing is to have a desire and not doubt your abilities.

Hello, dear readers. On this page you can test your musical ear using the "Solfeggio Online" block. Let's figure out how it works. To test your musical ear, click "Start". Previously, you can select one of the five presented keys, as well as a mode. By default, the “note” mode and the key of C major will be enabled.

You can guess one note - "note" mode, guess five notes - "test" mode, guess an interval - "intervals" mode.

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By clicking on the "Start" button, either a note or an interval will be played to you, in accordance with the mode that you have chosen. Next, from the list, you need to select which note/interval was sounded and click on the “Check” button.

If you guessed correctly, the sun sign will appear. If you select the test mode, you will be shown how many of the proposed notes you guessed. By clicking the "Again" button, you can take the test again, select a different key or mode.

You can also enable or disable the display of the correct note or interval if you do not guess correctly (by default - off) by clicking on the green square with the note in the lower left corner:

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And here is the test itself - I wish you good luck.

Note Test Intervals Chords

About intervals

You will hear that the sound of all intervals is different, but they can be divided into several groups - some sound sharp and dissonant - this group is called sharp or dissonant, these include seconds (m2, b2), sevenths (m7, b7) , as well as the tritone (which is called the diminished fifth - um5 or the augmented quart - uv4). All other intervals are euphonious.

But the latter can also be divided into large, small and pure. Major and minor euphonious intervals are thirds and sixths, pure fourths, fifths, octaves (pure ones are also called “empty”, since they have a sound neither major nor minor). Major and minor, as you remember, differ in their sound - major third (b3), for example, sounds major (cheerful) and is the main indicator of the major chord, minor (m3) - minor (sad), with sixths also - major (b6 ) - has a major sound; small (m6) - minor.

Now that you know how intervals are distributed in terms of sound, it will be easier for you to navigate the process of recognizing them by ear.

Since ancient times, it has been believed that a person’s ear for music is a gift from God. Scientists explain this concept by the ability to recognize notes, perceive sounds and reproduce them using the voice. There are two main types of musical ear: absolute and relative. Nature bestows an absolute ear for music from birth. People who have it can easily repeat any piece of music. Relative hearing can be gradually developed by practicing music.

In order to discover that you have an ear for music, you don’t have to turn to musicians. The easiest way to test your ear for music is to try to repeat the melody you heard as accurately as possible, while trying to reproduce the rhythm. Even if you couldn’t repeat it the first time, this does not mean that you have no ear for music. This may be a consequence of coordination problems in the hearing or vocal apparatus. In this case, you can develop your ear for music with the help of special exercises.

So, how to develop your hearing? There are many ways. You can sing more often with an accompanist, try singing two-part melodies, sing the same melodies in different tones, or sing up-and-down scales. Singing as part of a choir helps develop your hearing well, especially if these are the parts of the second voices.

Having discovered that they have an ear for music, many people wonder how to improve their hearing. Firstly, you can train your ear for music using special online programs. You need to try to duplicate the songs with your voice. Listening to the melody, you can try to distribute it to the sounds of any musical instrument, such as a guitar.

Guitar is the most common and convenient for home use, musical instrument. If you have a guitar at home, and with the help of exercises you still managed to pull your ear out from under the bear, you need to know how to tune the guitar by ear.

To do this you need to: tune the first string, which corresponds to the note “E”, the second string needs to be tuned by pressing it at the fifth fret. Tuning continues until the same sound as the first string is achieved. The third string is pressed on the fourth fret, and must match the tone, open second string. The fourth string is pressed at the fifth fret, and should match the tone of the open third string. The fifth string is pressed at the fifth fret, and should match the tone of the open fourth string. The sixth string is pressed at the fifth fret and should match the tone of the open fifth string.

To make it easier to tune your guitar, the sounds of the strings can be downloaded. A special program called a tuner will make the setup even easier. The most convenient program to use is AP Guitar Tuner 1.02. It can be easily downloaded on the Internet. With the help of these programs, with a minimum of effort, you can achieve perfect guitar tuning that will surprise even experienced musicians.

You might be singing like a rock star in the shower or in the car, but sometimes it's hard to objectively evaluate your own vocal abilities. It turns out that it’s quite possible to evaluate yourself if you learn to listen and hear correctly. Record yourself and pay attention to tone, pitch, and ability to control your voice. The good news is that almost anyone can learn to sing well. Follow simple recommendations to develop your vocal abilities.

Steps

Part 1

Assess the overall tone and timbre of your voice. Timbre is general characteristics the sound of the voice. If you hit all the notes but the tone or timbre doesn't match the song, the performance won't sound right. in the best possible way. Pay attention to how clearly and consistently you emphasize vowel sounds, how fully you use your vocal register, and how you reproduce rhythmic nuances (adapt your voice to suit various styles performance).

• When assessing timbre, pay attention to the softness or hardness, harshness or smoothness, strength or weakness of the voice.

Annabeth Nowicki, private vocal teacher:“Even though some people are naturally better singers than others, it is a skill that can be developed and improved. If you really love singing, then approach it wisely and work on yourself regularly.”

Use your range and technique daily. Some people are naturally better at controlling their voices than others, but every singer benefits from practice. Continue to learn to control your breathing, develop your voice and hearing, and find that musical style, which best suits your tone.

• Musical talent often develops parallel to musical talent. Get to know vocal techniques and learn to use your voice as an instrument. The more you know about the different components of proper execution, the more effective your practice will be.

1. Take vocal lessons. If you find someone who can teach you how to use your voice as an instrument, your singing will improve significantly. Choose a tutor who will not only teach you how to hit the notes correctly, but will also be able to develop your overall performance technique. A good teacher will tell you how to stand, breathe, move and read notes correctly while performing vocal parts.

   • If you have friends taking vocal lessons, ask them for recommendations. You can also rely on feedback from the choir director, local groups and ensembles.
   • Many teachers offer a trial lesson for free or at a reduced price. Take trial lessons from several teachers to choose best option. Did the teacher inspire you? Did you talk most of the class? Did you focus only on the voice or did you also pay attention to the technique?

2. Learn to accept constructive criticism. If you have a wonderful singing voice, you will already know this, as well as the reverse situation. Just as a beginner guitarist has to go through an awkward stage when he is still not very good at playing the instrument and does not always hit the strings, singers should work hard to improve their voice. Such skills are not given to a person from birth, but are acquired through hard work.

   • If someone told you that you can't sing, but you have desire learn, then continue to work tirelessly on your voice. Don't listen to ill-wishers. There are people who will never learn to sing, no matter how hard they try. If this is the case, then you will already know about it.

3. Join a music school or local choir to practice singing and develop your voice. Joining a choir is a great way to improve your vocal skills. You will be given the opinion of the choir director and other members about your abilities, and you will also have the chance to work in a team. Often, inexperienced performers are more comfortable singing with other people and not becoming the center of attention from critics.

   Continue to study and practice regularly to improve your technique. If you decide that you don't have natural ability, but you love to sing, then keep working. Your teacher will help you get the most out of your abilities. The joy of singing is available to everyone.