eartraining

Ear training, sometimes called aural training, is the discipline of developing the auditory skills needed to identify musical elements by ear. It covers pitch recognition, rhythm, melody, harmony, and timbre, and is practiced by instrumentalists, vocalists, composers, and conductors to improve listening, memory, and improvisation.

Core components include pitch and interval recognition (identifying two pitches and the distance between them), rhythmic dictation and clapping, melodic contour (recognizing ascending/descending shapes), chord progressions and harmonic function, scales and modes, and timbre discrimination. Training typically combines listening exercises with active reproduction, such as singing, playing from ear, or writing what is heard.

Common methods involve solfege or numerical syllables, fixed or movable do, interval drills, chord-tone and progression exercises, melodic dictation, and rhythmic transcription. Practice is usually structured in short, regular sessions with gradually increasing difficulty and frequent feedback, often aided by reference pitches or a tonic pitch, and sometimes by metronome use.

Tools include keyboard or piano, digital audio workstations, ear training software, and online exercises. Benefits reported by musicians include improved sight-reading, faster transcription, enhanced improvisation, and better performance communication. Ear training is typically taught alongside rhythm, harmony, and sight-singing in music education.