Ear Training

[Raymwiii]

Hi I am new here. I'm 39 but only been playing a few years. And by that I mean by myself in my house. I am really intimidated by how to start learning to play what I hear without looking up chords and tabs. Any body got anything that helped with this?

[tupper]

The original post should provide more information. Are you flatpicking or fingerpicking ? What type of music do you want to play ? The degree of complexity in music varies considerably. How good a player do you want to become ? Are you familiar with music theory, and if so, how much ?

The more information you provide, the better the reply you receive. It seems as though some readers immediately start thinking a poster is interested in playing the same style of music they play. The last sentence was just an observation, not a complaint. This reaction is not limited to guitar players.

[stanron]

Play along with a music radio station. It doesn't have to be a genre that you like. It's probably best if it's not guitar music. Whatever is playing try and find the key. Try and copy short melodic bits of the music. If a singer is singing try and play the melody. Don't worry about scales or chords. Just try and copy short sequences of notes. Some bits will be easy and some bits will be hard. Just keep trying.

[NormanKliman]

Originally Posted by Raymwiii

...Any body got anything that helped with this?

Transcribing, by which I mean slowing down recordings with a computer and writing your own tab. It gets easier with experience.

Some chords have a unique sound, like a first-position E minor with the open strings, but there are other things. For example, sometimes you can tell that a chord is fretted high on the bass strings because it sounds fatter than the same notes on the trebles.

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by Raymwiii

Hi I am new here. I'm 39 but only been playing a few years. And by that I mean by myself in my house. I am really intimidated by how to start learning to play what I hear without looking up chords and tabs. Any body got anything that helped with this?

Yes!

When I began (back in the Stone age), it was a 2-speed reel-to-reel tape deck. Now it's this: https://www.seventhstring.com/xscribe/screenshots.html

It might look like it's designed to tell you the notes and chords, but actually its purpose is to help you listen (slowing down, looping, changing key, etc), giving some note/chord info to help you check.

I agree with stanron, you should also try just playing along with the radio, or with any streamed music - even if you can only find one note that seems to fit a song! That's a great workout for general ear training, but for actually learning a song in detail, I'll be firing up Transcribe and doing it note by note - getting it 100% accurate however long it takes.

But don't be afraid to look up chords and tabs first. Sometimes they're actually right!! Even when not, they make a good sketch to start from, which you refine using your ear and the original track - and software to help.

[Pine]

Originally Posted by Raymwiii

Hi I am new here. I'm 39 but only been playing a few years. And by that I mean by myself in my house. I am really intimidated by how to start learning to play what I hear without looking up chords and tabs. Any body got anything that helped with this?

Ear training encompasses many different skills. From recognition of intervals and modes, to transcribing the music to notation/tab, to having your fingers translate what you are hearing to your guitar. These skills are all related, but different.

I’m currently working on the skill of playing along with songs I may not have heard before, or learning a riff in a song by ear. As a guide, I’m using the book “Learning Music By Ear” by Dan Miller. It can be purchased at www.flatpick.com.

Dan has you start with simple songs that you already know. Songs like “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” or “She’ll Be Coming Around the Mountain". He has a long list of songs with 3 or less chords, in a major scale in one octave.

For me it has been a good starting point, and is surprisingly fun.

Good Luck!

[srbell]

Learning enough theory to understand at least the major scale (that is, how it's "constructed") and how the chords in a given key are formed is a huge plus. This, along with knowing the common chord patterns that are used, are pretty much the keys to the kingdom.
For instance, in the key of E, the chords that I would most expect to see are E, F#m, G#m, A, B, C#m, and D# diminished. Most of our music these days is predominantly based on the root or I (E in this case), IV (A in this case), and V (B in this case). The I, IV, and V chords are generally major chords. Ignoring the diminished chord as it's a topic all on it's own, the other 3 chords (the ii, iii, and vi - F#m, G#m, and C#m in this case) are usually minor. Combine this with some knowledge of the common chord progressions (for instance, I, V, vi, IV) and bingo - you'll know what chords to play. For the I, V, vi, IV example I just gave, assuming the key of E, the chords would be E, B, C#m, A. If you want an idea of what that progression sounds like think of "Don't Stop Believin'", by Journey.
Once your ears get used to hearing these patterns you'll find yourself listening to the radio and already have a good idea of how to play many of the songs. You may not be able to exactly pick out the key just by listening, but the chord progression or patterns are pretty recognizable. If you can get a grasp on this you will be a long way towards being able to listen to a song and figure it out without resorting to song chord charts.