Ear Training for Instrumentalists by Matt Glaser

[Jason Sioco]

I discovered a book on the internet called Ear Training for Instrumentalists by Matt Glaser. I tried many ear training methods and softwares and they all failed to give me a good ear. The book contains 6 cds and I like the content of what's on it, but maybe they are just hyping me up to buy their product. The ear training method that I find most effective are those methods that have singing on it or singing what you play. This book has singing in it.

Is this book a cure to give me a good ear or is it another scam? Anyone here using this book or have heard of this book?

I placed this post on the Improvisation section because the benefits of the book is that I'll be able to transcribe instrumental solos in one hearing and improvise freely over blues chord changes.

[docbop]

Seems to be a couple approaches to ear training I see these days. The traditional isolated interval recognition and I'm seeing other teaching pitch within a key center. The first way they just hit notes and you recognize the interval, you figure out melodies interval by interval. The other method they a I IV V cadence first then hit a note, the idea you hear the key center and recognize the pitch within the key center. They say the second method if you know the key then you know the note names more like having perfect pitch.

Then there old school and transcribe lots of music and transcribe via learning to sing the line and transcribe from your singing.

My ear has never been a strong suit for me so I'm always working on it, and would like to hear others comments on the various methods and suggestions.

[Hep To The Jive]

In my music colledge we had a solfedgio class( US analog of ear training), and most of what we did was dictations. Melodic dictations, harmonic dictations, or both. The teacher would play a piece on the piano, and we had to write it down, after like 3-5 times. She would joke that for 'specialy' gifted she would play one more time. The singing or even humming was not allowed. It was told that we need to devolped an inner ear. I was way behind in my class, to be honest. Years later, being in US college, i was going through something like that again, and this time it was allright. Either I ve grown, or American ear training wasnt as tough as Russian.

[docbop]

In my music colledge we had a solfedgio class( US analog of ear training), and most of what we did was dictations. Melodic dictations, harmonic dictations, or both. The teacher would play a piece on the piano, and we had to write it down, after like 3-5 times. She would joke that for 'specialy' gifted she would play one more time. The singing or even humming was not allowed. It was told that we need to devolped an inner ear. I was way behind in my class, to be honest. Years later, being in US college, i was going through something like that again, and this time it was allright. Either I ve grown, or American ear training wasnt as tough as Russian.

I can understand no singing in class during dictation, but a key part of ear training is singing, you need to learn what intervals/scale degree feel like to recognize them quickly.

[Hep To The Jive]

I can understand no singing in class during dictation, but a key part of ear training is singing, you need to learn what intervals/scale degree feel like to recognize them quickly.

No of course, I only meant during the dictation. We did some singing exercises as well. But the dictation was the hardest for me. Maybe because there's (still to this day) no immediate connection for me between a pitch and a note name. I can sing and intonate intervals correctly, but it takes time to name a note. I learned to play by ear, and only learned theory and reading just prior to college, when i was already 20 yo, while all my classmates were trained from childhood, and didn't have such problem. That's what I think slowed me down. I still never think notes when I play, just visually and by ear.

[Petimar]

I owned this years ago. I honestly don't remember if I learned much from it.

I have learned quite quite a bit from various IOS apps. Much cheaper as well.

[Jason Sioco]

I finally purchased Ear Training for Instrumentalists by Matt Glaser. It was on sale, and my Mom used her credit card to pay as my Christmas gift. Back in 2012, I got the David Lucas Burge Perfect Pitch Supercourse as my Christmas gift. I have come a long way from buying ear training products. Hopefully, it will work for me this time.

[setemupjoe]

I finally purchased Ear Training for Instrumentalists by Matt Glaser. It was on sale, and my Mom used her credit card to pay as my Christmas gift. Back in 2012, I got the David Lucas Burge Perfect Pitch Supercourse as my Christmas gift. I have come a long way from buying ear training products. Hopefully, it will work for me this time.

I teach ear training at MI in Los Angeles and I always tell my students to practice every day for at least 15 minutes. Most ear training apps or books help direct you with exercises that will improve your ear but I think it's a mistake to think some book will give you a good ear. Only you can do that with daily practice. The book is a guide, nothing more. Developing a better ear is a gradual process and can take a while before you notice real results therefore you should practice every day even if you don't get immediate results. People often give up when they don't see quick results. Ear training is a life long pursuit. Good luck.

[Jonzo]

"Ear Master" software might interest you.

[Jason Sioco]

"Ear Master" software might interest you.

Ear Master is only good for Aural Test in music school or when you are auditioning for college or university, but it doesn't necessarily help you develop a good ear, where you can transcribe solos in one hearing. If I use Ear Master again I'll go backwards in my progress.

Ear Master helped me in my Aural Test in University. When we were doing Intervals, triads, and modes recognition, my classmates were wildly humming, while I just recognized it without even trying. As if, I was just practicing in my computer. Lol.

I want to go to the next level in my ear training with the program by Matt Glaser

[Jason Sioco]

I teach ear training at MI in Los Angeles and I always tell my students to practice every day for at least 15 minutes. Most ear training apps or books help direct you with exercises that will improve your ear but I think it's a mistake to think some book will give you a good ear. Only you can do that with daily practice. The book is a guide, nothing more. Developing a better ear is a gradual process and can take a while before you notice real results therefore you should practice every day even if you don't get immediate results. People often give up when they don't see quick results. Ear training is a life long pursuit. Good luck.

Once the book and cds are delivered at my home, I will practice the exercises on the book daily. You are right. I can practice for at least 15 minutes a day. It should not take a lot of my time. Thanks.

[docbop]

The thing I've been seeing lately is people teaching harmonic or key center based ear training. So instead of learning distance between note the typical interval training, they teach hear notes as what pitch they are in relation to key. So they play a cadence to establish key, then play a note and you id the note as to what scale note it is 3rd, 5th, etc.

Is that a direction ear training schools are taking or just another approach being sold?

[smokinguit]

Ear Master is only good for Aural Test in music school or when you are auditioning for college or university, but it doesn't necessarily help you develop a good ear, where you can transcribe solos in one hearing. If I use Ear Master again I'll go backwards in my progress.

Are you kidding me. Ear master is a great program to develop your ears. It's not designed just for "Aural Test" or college auditions. It's all about sharpening your ears so you can play what you hear. I've been using it for a year now and I am so much more advance because of it.

[Takemitsu]

Are you kidding me. Ear master is a great program to develop your ears. It's not designed just for "Aural Test" or college auditions. It's all about sharpening your ears so you can play what you hear. I've been using it for a year now and I am so much more advance because of it.

I agree, and I think you have a melodic dictation where you choose the number of notes in the phrase and if its a tonal environment or atonal.

also this is a funny app to learn to "see" interval on the fretboard http://www.fachords.com/guitar-ear-t...o/#.VJjxDKAIZA

[Jason Sioco]

I agree, and I think you have a melodic dictation where you choose the number of notes in the phrase and if its a tonal environment or atonal.

also this is a funny app to learn to "see" interval on the fretboard Ear Training Online | Guitar Interval Ear Training

I stopped using the Ear Master program, because I think their melodic dictation system is a bit flawed. You mentioned that you can change the settings to be tonal or atonal. I still have my ear master in my laptop, I like to know how you can change the settings to be tonal.

Hippohoppu wa ongaku de wa arimasen

Are you Japanese? I'm learning Elementary Japanese in my school.

[ecj]

The thing I've been seeing lately is people teaching harmonic or key center based ear training. So instead of learning distance between note the typical interval training, they teach hear notes as what pitch they are in relation to key. So they play a cadence to establish key, then play a note and you id the note as to what scale note it is 3rd, 5th, etc.

Is that a direction ear training schools are taking or just another approach being sold?

I feel like that's been the "second step" for a while now. All my music theory texts have you moving towards that.

1) Learn to hear melodic intervals and patterns.
2) Learn to hear a harmonic interval.
3) Chords, progressions, etc.

(2) is really what you're talking about. If I play two notes and you can hear that the top one is the fifth, everything kind of comes from that. I'm not sure how you could get to that point without first learning what a fifth sounds like melodically in isolation, but maybe there's a fast track that I don't know about.

I've gotten pretty good at lifting things off of records, and can hear most simple progressions now in pop tunes, etc. Still working towards the jazz stuff. All those extensions...

[docbop]

I feel like that's been the "second step" for a while now. All my music theory texts have you moving towards that.

1) Learn to hear melodic intervals and patterns.
2) Learn to hear a harmonic interval.
3) Chords, progressions, etc.

(2) is really what you're talking about. If I play two notes and you can hear that the top one is the fifth, everything kind of comes from that. I'm not sure how you could get to that point without first learning what a fifth sounds like melodically in isolation, but maybe there's a fast track that I don't know about.

I've gotten pretty good at lifting things off of records, and can hear most simple progressions now in pop tunes, etc. Still working towards the jazz stuff. All those extensions...

That's their explanation is so many beginning programs focus on recognizing distance between notes a 5th apart or 3rd apart. That hearing within a key that a note is a 5th if you know the key then you know the pitch name, so that gets you closer to being like you have perfect pitch.