How to play by ear?

[rival]

Hey guys.

I'm new to piano and learned the major and minor chords. I really want to learn how to play simple riffs by ear without having to use tabs. I'm not looking to play chords by ear but just single note pieces that I hear.

I can figure out simple songs on my own through trial and error but it is very time consuming for me and I was wondering if there is a system that you use to figure out songs on your own.

One person told me that there are only 12 notes on the piano so its not hard to figure it out, but I don't see it as 12 notes because a lot of songs i play cross over into the different octaves and to me there are more than 12 notes to fiddle around with, which makes it more complex.

Thank you

[spencervirt]

Playing by ear is really one of those things that you either do well or you can't.

Yes, you can develop it, but in most cases you just need to have a good ear for music.

What might help is trying to memorize what each key sounds like and the differences in pitch between notes. It will also help to find out what key the song is that you are listening to. This will allow you to eliminate some of those 12 notes, and no key contains all 12. For example, if the song is in a flat, you know that the chances of there being an oddball a natural is very slim.

Practice will make perfect, but once again it is still one of those things that comes naturally to some and not to others. I was very lucky in that respect, but it messed me up in the long run because I learned piano the wrong way. I relied on my ear to the point that I was trying to learn Liszt without the sheet music. That's when I got a teacher

Every day, take a song that you like and try to figure it out. After a while, you will find that you are improving! I wish you the best of luck is your endeavors, but make sure that you LEARN TO READ MUSIC. I wish that somebody had told me that as I would be a much better pianist overall now than I currently am.

[eartraininghq]

I disagree with Spencer in the view that you can either play by ear or you can't.

Anyone can develop their ear so that they can work out tunes easily and quickly.

Developing your ear is made up of 2 processes:

1. Make sure that you can hear clearly - singing is the easiest way to work on this. When you hear a piece of music can you sing it easily? If so you're hearing it clearly. If you struggle with this, sit down at your piano and play a melody slowly and sing along with it. Practice this every day and your ear will get better at tuning in.

2. Internalise the sounds that music is made up of - Working out tunes quickly is simply a matter of memorizing all the sounds that music is made up of. You can think of it like a database. Once you've built up a large database of intervals, chords, melodies etc. You'll be automatically check any sound that you hear against your database and that's how you can work out tunes easily and instantly.

It also makes memorizing tunes and improvising much easier, because you can work out any melody/chord progression as soon as you hear it.

When you start working on this, make sure you learn in relation to a key centre, with a system such as solfege or scale-degrees, as this is an important first step.

If you want more detailed information you can have a look at my website:

https://www.eartraininghq.com/

There's information about the complete ear training course that we've developed, and there's also a collection of free video tutorials called Ear Training Essentials which you can take a look at for an introduction.

[nickmeads]

For example, if the song is in a flat, you know that the chances of there being an oddball a natural is very slim.

What the hell?

Ab:

Ab Bb C Db Eb F G

4 flats
3 naturals

Neither has a chance of being slim, I'm not sure if your advice is even credible anymore

[spencervirt]

A (they key A) Natural, not a natural haha

[allthumbs]

Hey guys.

I'm new to piano and learned the major and minor chords. I really want to learn how to play simple riffs by ear without having to use tabs. I'm not looking to play chords by ear but just single note pieces that I hear.

I can figure out simple songs on my own through trial and error but it is very time consuming for me and I was wondering if there is a system that you use to figure out songs on your own.

One person told me that there are only 12 notes on the piano so its not hard to figure it out, but I don't see it as 12 notes because a lot of songs i play cross over into the different octaves and to me there are more than 12 notes to fiddle around with, which makes it more complex.

Thank you

You must be a troll.

[spencervirt]

Why would you say that? It's a legitimate question for a newbie.

[allthumbs]

Why would you say that? It's a legitimate question for a newbie.

Oh really.

Here is a definition of 'troll' from Wikipedia.

In Internet slang, a troll is someone who posts inflammatory, extraneous, or off-topic messages in an online community, such as an online discussion forum, chat room, or blog, with the primary intent of provoking readers into an emotional response or of otherwise disrupting normal on-topic discussion.

I would add frivolous to the above definition.
Now that we have a frame of reference, lets take a closer look and analyze this post from skeptic's perspective.

Hey guys.

I'm new to piano and learned the major and minor chords.

So far, so good and a commendable achievement.

I really want to learn how to play simple riffs by ear without having to use tabs.

Ah what is the poster talking about here. I’ve heard of tabs for guitar, so what is being referred to?

I'm not looking to play chords by ear but just single note pieces that I hear.

Oh really, this statement doesn’t make any sense.

I can figure out simple songs on my own through trial and error but it is very time consuming for me and I was wondering if there is a system that you use to figure out songs on your own. .

Yes, it is called musical notation. Obviously. Here the poster even contradicts himself in the same sentence.

One person told me that there are only 12 notes on the piano so its not hard to figure it out, but I don't see it as 12 notes because a lot of songs i play cross over into the different octaves and to me there are more than 12 notes to fiddle around with, which makes it more complex. .

An amazing grasp of the obvious, don't you think?
Really, is there any further need to feed the troll.

Thank you

DNFTT – DO NOT FEED THE TROLL

BTW - The poster hasn't logged on since joining, although he's probably been back as a guest to see what has been generated, so I've been part of the problem with this post.

[chopinlover23]

Playing by ear is a wonderful experience,especially with modern songs like pop or rock. And you can add your own variation to it Here's how play by ear with modern songs.

1. Listen to the song you wanna learn by ear
2. Learn the chord progressions, the key it is written because this makes it easier for you to play it by ear.
3. Sit on the piano, then sing the song, start pressing keys on the piano to match what your singing.
4. Write it down on a music notebook
5. DONT GIVE UP IF IT DOES NOT TURN OUT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME. Keep trying and doing your best.

I Hope it helps.... =)