Mastering Ear Training: The Additive and Complementary Approaches

Ear training is a crucial skill for any musician, enabling you to identify intervals, chords, and melodies by ear. Two effective methods to enhance your ear training are the additive approach and the complementary approach. The additive approach involves using familiar intervals as stepping stones to identify more complex ones, while the complementary approach focuses on recognizing how descending intervals correspond to ascending intervals. This comprehensive guide will explore both methods, providing practical steps and exercises to improve your interval recognition skills.

Enhancing Your Ear Training: The Additive Approach

The additive approach to ear training involves breaking down unfamiliar intervals into combinations of familiar ones. By starting with an interval you already know well and adding or subtracting a smaller interval, you can identify the target interval. This method leverages your existing knowledge to build new skills incrementally.

Understanding the Additive Approach

For example, if you are trying to decipher what a flat fifth sounds like, you can:

Hum a perfect fifth to yourself.
Then, hum a half-step down from there.

Similarly, to find a flat seventh, you can:

Hum a sixth.
Go up a half-step from there.

Alternatively:

Hum a fifth.
Then, hum a minor third up from there to get to the flat seventh.

Researching the Additive Approach

Upon researching the topic, it is clear that the additive approach is recognized and utilized by many musicians and educators. Several notable musicians and ear training experts have discussed similar methods in their teachings. Here are some key points from various sources:

1. Ear Training Methods by Bruce Arnold
Bruce Arnold, a well-known musician and educator, has written extensively on ear training. In his work, he emphasizes the importance of internalizing intervals and often recommends using familiar intervals as reference points. He suggests that students practice identifying intervals by first singing a known interval and then adjusting by a half-step or whole step to find the desired interval.

2. “Functional Ear Training” by Alain Benbassat
Alain Benbassat’s approach to ear training focuses on the functional use of intervals within a musical context. He advocates for using common intervals as reference points. For instance, to identify a major sixth, one might first think of a perfect fifth and then add a major second. His method aligns closely with the additive approach, emphasizing incremental learning.

3. “Ear Training for the Contemporary Musician” by Keith Wyatt and Carl Schroeder
This book discusses various ear training techniques, including interval recognition. The authors suggest breaking down difficult intervals into simpler ones. For example, to recognize a minor seventh, they recommend thinking of a perfect octave and then lowering it by a whole step. This method mirrors the additive approach by using well-known intervals to build new understanding.

Practical Steps for Implementing the Additive Approach

Start with Familiar Intervals: Begin with intervals you are confident in identifying, such as perfect fifths, major thirds, and minor thirds.
Use Incremental Steps: Break down complex intervals into combinations of these familiar intervals. For instance, to find a major seventh, start with an octave and lower it by a half-step.
Practice with a Piano or App: Use a piano or an ear training app to practice. Play a known interval and then adjust by the required steps to find the target interval.
Sing and Internalize: Singing the intervals is crucial. Sing the familiar interval first, then make the incremental adjustment. This helps internalize the sound and makes it easier to recognize in different musical contexts.
Consistent Practice: Regular practice is essential. Dedicate time each day to practicing interval recognition using the additive approach.

Hearing Intervals Below the Root: The Complementary Approach

Understanding intervals below a root note can be a challenging aspect of ear training. However, by using a complementary approach, which involves recognizing how descending intervals correspond to ascending intervals, musicians can improve their ear training skills. This method relies on the principle that the sum of the interval numbers of descending and ascending intervals equals nine, and their qualities are reversed (major becomes minor and vice versa).

Understanding the Complementary Approach

The complementary approach to hearing intervals below the root is based on two main principles:

The interval numbers of descending and ascending intervals always add up to nine.
The quality of the intervals is reversed: major becomes minor and minor becomes major.

For example:

A descending minor 6th (m6) corresponds to an ascending major 3rd (M3).
A descending minor 7th (m7) corresponds to an ascending major 2nd (M2).
A descending major 6th (M6) corresponds to an ascending minor 3rd (m3).

By understanding these relationships, musicians can use familiar ascending intervals to identify and internalize their descending counterparts.

Researching the Complementary Approach

Research into this method reveals that several musicians and educators have discussed similar concepts. Here are some insights from various sources:

1. “Ear Training for the Contemporary Musician” by Keith Wyatt and Carl Schroeder
This book provides an overview of different ear training techniques. The authors mention using complementary intervals to recognize descending intervals. They suggest practicing by first identifying the ascending interval and then imagining it descending by reversing its quality and adjusting the octave.

2. “The Musician’s Guide to Aural Skills” by Joel Phillips, Jane Piper Clendinning, and Elizabeth West Marvin
This guide discusses the importance of recognizing intervals in both ascending and descending forms. The authors emphasize using the complementary approach, where musicians can leverage their familiarity with ascending intervals to identify their descending equivalents.

3. Online Ear Training Courses and Apps
Several online courses and apps incorporate the complementary approach in their ear training exercises. They often include exercises that require students to recognize intervals both above and below the root, reinforcing the relationships between complementary intervals.

Practical Steps for Implementing the Complementary Approach

Understand Interval Relationships: Familiarize yourself with the complementary relationships between intervals. Remember that the sum of the interval numbers is nine, and their qualities are reversed.
Practice with a Piano or App: Use a piano or an ear training app to practice both ascending and descending intervals. Start by identifying the ascending interval, then find its complementary descending interval by reversing the quality and adjusting the octave.
Sing and Internalize: Singing the intervals is crucial. Sing the ascending interval first, then imagine it descending by applying the complementary relationship.
Use Familiar Intervals: Start with intervals you are confident in identifying, such as major thirds and minor thirds. Practice descending intervals by using their complementary ascending intervals.
Consistent Practice: Regular practice is essential. Dedicate time each day to practicing interval recognition using the complementary approach.

Example Exercises

Exercise 1: Major Sixth Descending

To identify a descending major sixth (M6), think of its complementary ascending interval: minor third (m3).
Hum or play a minor third, then imagine it descending an octave.

Exercise 2: Minor Seventh Descending

To identify a descending minor seventh (m7), think of its complementary ascending interval: major second (M2).
Hum or play a major second, then imagine it descending an octave.

Exercise 3: Perfect Fourth Descending

To identify a descending perfect fourth (P4), think of its complementary ascending interval: perfect fifth (P5).
Hum or play a perfect fifth, then imagine it descending an octave.

Conclusion

Both the additive and complementary approaches to ear training provide powerful methods for improving your interval recognition skills. By leveraging familiar intervals and understanding their relationships, you can develop a more comprehensive ear for music. These methods, discussed by various musicians and educators, offer systematic ways to practice and internalize intervals, both above and below the root.

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