Why I think Adults can develop Perfect Pitch

[Mick-7]

A lot of the time, this is timbre. Like they know how an in-tune E string should vibrate more than we have the pitch ingrained. Like we wouldn’t have E and A blind if they were played on a keyboard or a trumpet.

Not sure what that means, if I tune my guitar's low E string to the pitch I remember, it has very little if anything to do with timbre.

[Cunamara]

Timbre matters in pitch recognition more than you might think. When I am trying to learn a song from a recording, it is easier to hear the pitches when played on guitar than, say, sax. I recognized the timbres of the guitar much better. It's even possible to hear which string the note is on- an E on the 12th fret of the 6th string has a different timbre than on the 7th fret of the 5th string or the 2nd fret of the 4th string. Most of us recognize that even if unconsciously.

[Mick-7]

Timbre matters in pitch recognition more than you might think. When I am trying to learn a song from a recording, it is easier to hear the pitches when played on guitar than, say, sax. I recognized the timbres of the guitar much better. It's even possible to hear which string the note is on- an E on the 12th fret of the 6th string has a different timbre than on the 7th fret of the 5th string or the 2nd fret of the 4th string. Most of us recognize that even if unconsciously.

That is a matter of phrasing more than timbre, how the notes are articulated - at least for me. I can usually quickly identify the notes/pitches played on a saxophone but duplicating the exact phrasing of them on the guitar can take some effort.

[pamosmusic]

Not sure what that means, if I tune my guitar's low E string to the pitch I remember, it has very little if anything to do with timbre.

It has much to do with timbre. Different pitches resonate and feel very different on different instruments.

Though it is easier to understand with other instruments.

Singers fairly quickly learn tuning fork A 440 but it has as much to do with how it feels in their voice than how it sounds.

Middle C sounds very very different on a trumpet than on a trombone because the instruments are reaching into very different parts of their register. The trumpet sounds warm and round and sometimes kind of muddy in a beginner. The trombone sounds bright and full and sometimes strained in a beginner.

So when you learn to recognize when your guitar is in tune, you actually might not have learned to recognize those pitches. Instead you’ve learned to recognize when your guitar is in tune.

Simple test: find a pianist. Tell them to pick a random note in the low register of their instrument. Can you tell them what it is?

If you have the E2 drilled into your ear, you should be able to use it tell them with confidence what they’re playing.

[pamosmusic]

That is a matter of phrasing more than timbre, how the notes are articulated - at least for me. I can usually quickly identify the notes/pitches played on a saxophone but duplicating the exact phrasing of them on the guitar can take some effort.

Because the instruments are very different and produce notes in very different ways.

It feels like you read half his post and/or missed his point.

[Mick-7]

Because the instruments are very different and produce notes in very different ways.

It feels like you read half his post and/or missed his point.

I understood Cunamara's point, it just does not match my experience, he said: "When I am trying to learn a song from a recording, it is easier to hear the pitches when played on guitar than, say, sax. I recognized the timbres of the guitar much better."

I don't find it harder to hear the pitches played by a sax, but they tend to phrase and embellish their notes in ways that can be difficult to duplicate on the guitar. Different types of guitars have different timbres too: nylon string, acoustic and electric steel string, synth guitars, etc. Do you find it harder to hear the pitches produced by some types of guitars than of others? If timbre is as an important factor in pitch identification as you suggest, you should.

Simple test: find a pianist. Tell them to pick a random note in the low register of their instrument. Can you tell them what it is?

I didn't say I have perfect pitch, but I have a pitch pipe and harmonica, and can sing the E pitch before I play it on them, so it is ingrained in my memory, how deeply I'm not sure. That is, I don't know how long I'd have to go without hearing it to forget it.

P.S. - Here's a nifty online tone generator I just discovered, would be a more useful ear training tool if it had an option to generate random tones -- Online Tone Generator | Frequency Generator