Functional Ear Trainer ---- Your thoughts please!

[mrkpower]

Has anyone ever used the free software "Functional Ear Trainer" for ear training here? How do you feel about it please?

[mrkpower]

Here is the link:
http://www.miles.be/

[JonPR]

I've not used it myself, but I've heard a lot of good things about it.

You'll find some recommendations here:
http://www.thegearpage.net/board/sho....php?t=1259181

[posternutbag]

The idea is solid. Instead of trying to teach perfect pitch which, IMO is impossible to teach, FET tries to teach you to recognize intervals, which I think can be taught.

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by posternutbag

The idea is solid. Instead of trying to teach perfect pitch which, IMO is impossible to teach

Not according to some, but it's certainly difficult and time-consuming to learn, and pointless anyhow...

Originally Posted by posternutbag

, FET tries to teach you to recognize intervals, which I think can be taught.

Sure. Relative pitch is what matters, and is easier too.
And the point of FET (AFAIK) - as opposed to other interval trainers - is it teaches intervals in context, not as isolated things.

[posternutbag]

Ear training, by its very nature, is difficult and time-consuming. I don't think this program is the best way to go about it, primarily because I find it difficult to believe that anyone would put in the effort necessary to see results. At my college, ear training and transcription classes were notoriously poorly attended, viewed by the very good musicians as needless time wasters, and feared beyond all others by the less capable. Those two classes were the "organic chemistry" of the Music department.

[DupleMeter]

It's free...so try it. If you get anything from it you're coming away that much ahead of where you were before.

Honestly, for ear training to really be relevant you need to cover several aspects beyond just simple intervals and/or chord types:

* Intervals
* Chord types
* Rhythmic Dictation (being able to notate a rhythm as you listen to it)
* Melodic dictation (being able to notate a melody as you listen to it)
* Harmonic Dictation (writing out chord progressions as you listen to them)
* Sight Singing (being able to sing a melody on sight without playing it through first)

In college we all had to take ear training every year, and most people hated it but when you started to notice the results it was just absolutely awesome. I really think that ear training is something best taught in a lesson/class format...but that's me.

As always YMMV.

[JonPR]

Having never done more than dabble in ear training exercises out of curiosity, my opinion is that the best practice is just to listen to music as much as you can, but listen with attention, trying to work out what's going on.
Not just the chord changes, but things like what instruments are playing, can you hear the bass, what effects can you hear, etc.

Naturally if you can try playing along at the same time, that's ideal, but even when that's not possible, just listen in that analytical way, honing your focus.

Exercises are all very well, but why would you use a running machine in a gym, when you can go running for real, in the fresh air?
What exactly is it you're training for, after all? You don't get gigs or record contracts - or write good songs - by being good at ear training exercises. Scoring 99% on an interval identification exercise might make you feel good, but it won't entertain anyone else.

Work with real music as much as you can (starting simple, if you find it hard). Exercises are not shortcuts - there are no shortcuts to musical ability. Like gym machines, exercises are just for when it's not possible to work with the real thing - and given the free availability of real music online, it's hard to see the purpose of online ear trainers, even free ones...

My personal experience of ear trainers is that they are ultimately frustrating. Being reasonably successful at them is never satisfying. Like any computer game, you always want to get better, "good" is never enough. And yet you only get better at the exercises themselves; it's circular.
Personally, I've not noticed it make any difference to how well I hear actual music. The only thing that makes a difference there is just doing more of that; along with developing some awareness of theory and song structure, the kinds of things one can expect to hear, and relate the actuality to.
And of course, working with actual music is a whole lot more enjoyable than exercises!