Ear training and singing intervals

Studies of music practice find that short sessions spread over several days work better than the same practice crammed into one long session.

Hearing and singing go together

Ear training has two halves. In recognition, you hear two notes and name the interval. In production, you are given one note and sing or play the other. Each half strengthens the other: singing a major third makes you feel its size from the inside, and recognising it tells you whether your singing was right. This final unit puts both together with the ear widget, which plays random intervals, and the singing widget, which listens through your microphone and shows how close you are to the target note.

How to practise recognition

Start with a small set of intervals that sound very different, such as a major third, a perfect fifth and an octave. When you score well, add one more, then another. Each answer in the widget is followed by the correct name, so wrong answers still teach you something. Listen to the whole interval before answering, and replay it if you are unsure. If two intervals keep getting confused, for example fourths and fifths, practise just those two for a while. The full set at the bottom of this page uses every interval the widget offers.

How to practise singing

Singing intervals needs a quiet room and a comfortable range. Press Listen to hear the target, hum it softly, then sing on "la" or "loo". The meter shows how many cents you are above or below; within about 40 cents counts as on target, and holding it there moves you to the next note. Use the solfège you learned in the reading course: do to mi is a major third, do to sol a perfect fifth, sol up to do a perfect fourth, and do to the next do an octave. Thinking in syllables links each leap to its place in the scale.

Matching pitch is a skill that responds to practice. When you can see whether you are above or below the target, you can correct yourself in real time, and most learners become steadier with regular feedback. If you are consistently a little sharp or flat, slow down, listen to the target again, and slide gently towards it rather than jumping.

A daily routine

A short daily routine works better than long, rare sessions. One possibility: two minutes of recognition with the full interval set; two minutes singing do, mi, sol, do; one minute singing a fourth and a fifth from the same starting note. Keep track of your score in the ear widget from day to day. Most people find that intervals they found hard in the first week become easy by the third, and that singing improves alongside listening.