Perfect Pitch Vs Relative Pitch

Most people think that ear-training has to do with perfect pitch. They think that you need perfect pitch for ear-training, or for picking chords and melodies out by ear, but…

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Perceiving Musical Information

Music is often described as a language. Music isn’t a literal “language,” but it contains information, even if it isn’t information we can express in words. Lyrics and descriptions don’t…

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The Limitations of Staff Notation

Standard notation has inherent limitations. There are many nuances in modern musical styles which staff notation can’t capture. You can play a piece of music perfectly, as it's written, while…

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Interacting With Music

The most important single measure of your abilities as a modern musician is your ability to interact with real music in real time. It’s the key to learning modern music.…

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Redefining Musical Literacy

Music educators write a lot about “musical literacy.” To classically-trained musicians, the definition of “musical literacy” is self-evident. It's the ability to read staff notation. Reading chord charts or guitar…

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A Manifesto For Modern Music Education

Back in 2010, the UK government published a "Music Manifesto" which promised to "provide every young person with first access to a range of music experiences," and "provide more opportunities…

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Reading Music By Ear – Part 1

The scene in Peter Shaffer’s Oscar-winning film Amadeus, where Mozart is able to play by ear the march Salieri had written for him, after hearing it played only once, is…

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