3 Quick & Easy Steps To Playing Music by Ear

Playing by ear is the ability to play a piece of music (or, eventually, learn an instrument) by simply listening to it repeatedly. The majority of self-taught musicians began their education this way; they picked up their instrument and began playing an easy melody from a well-known song, slowly picking out the notes as they went along. And even after these musicians master their instruments or a particular song, playing by ear still plays a large role. Many pop and rock bands don't play or write their songs based on sheet music, they figure the songs out by playing by ear. It's even common among non-musicians. Ever sit down a piano and mindlessly pick out the tune to "Mary Had a Little Lamb"? What about grabbing a guitar and suddenly finding yourself playing the opening licks to "Smoke on the Water"? That's playing by ear. You're able to play part of the song just because you've heard it so often.

Since music is basically composed of 3 elements ? melody, rhythm, and harmony, it is logical that there are also 3 basic steps to learning to play music by ear:

1. Charting the contour of the melody. Tunes move higher and lower ? up and down ? as the song progresses. Being aware of that movement is the first step. Once you mentally define the parameters of the melody, you can then begin to hone in on picking it out on your instrument. As an example, think of "Joy To The World". We've all sung it a zillion times, but have you ever noticed that the melody moves down exactly 8 steps (an octave), then gradually moves back up in increments, then repeats the down movement, etc. The entire melody is contained within those 8 notes, so you now know the parameters of the song and can begin to pick out the melody intelligently.

2. Harmonizing the melody with matching chords. The second element of music is harmony, and you can harmonize any melody just by matching the supporting chords to that melody. For example, if the melody is a "G", you can harmonize that melody by using a chord with G in it, such as the G chord (G, B, D), the C chord (C, E, G), or the Em chord (E, G, B), or the Eb chord (Eb, G, Bb) and so forth. By using your ear to guide you, you can learn to harmonize the melody of most any song using matching chords.

3. Using an appropriate rhythm that matches the feel of the song. This is usually the easiest part, since most people "feel" the beat and don't have to do any mental gymnastics to come up with an appropriate rhythm for a song. But for those of us that might be "rhythmically challenged", just by knowing that there are basically two meters available ? duple meter and triple meter -- that can be combined in infinite combinations, we can give the song either a "3" feeling (like a waltz or a jazz waltz) or a "4" feeling (like swing or a march or a ballad).

Playing by ear is a valuable technique for many musicians; learning songs based solely on hearing them is a great way to understand song and chord structure. In fact, a great number of rock and pop musicians learned to play their instruments this way. Instead of picking up a book or taking lessons, they concentrated on figuring out the notes and rhythms to a song until it was mastered. Then they moved on to another song. And another. Gradually, they learned their instrument just by playing by ear -- and in the process learned how to effectively structure a song in that particular genre. Playing by ear is also beneficial in helping a musician develop his or her own style; sure, they'll at first mimic the style of the song they're imitating, but the amalgamation of the music that they're playing by ear will help them create something distinctive, something indicative of them only.

Duane Shinn is the author of over 500 music courses for adults. His book-CD-DVD course titled "How To Play Piano By Ear Using Chords!" has sold well over 30,000 copies around the world. He is the author of the popular free 101-week online e-mail newsletter titled "Amazing Secrets Of Exciting Piano Chords & Sizzling Chord Progressions" with over 61,200 current subscribers.

Good News for the Musically Untalented

Have you ever been told that you were good at... Read More

Music Industry Insider: Tess Taylor of NARIP and LAMN

Members of LAMN (founded in 1988) and NARIP (founded in... Read More

Facts about Betty Kresin, Eminems grandmother

Betty Kresin, Eminem's grandmother from the maternal side... Read More

How to Use the Entire Piano Keyboard

There are 88 keys on the piano keyboard. Most pianists... Read More

How to Create a Multi-artistic Piece - Part II

In the last article, the creation of a theme, its... Read More

1959 Stratocaster Vintage Guitars

Mid 1959 Stratocaster vintage guitars have a slab rosewood fingerboard... Read More

How I Compose a Piece of Music

A number of people have asked about my own methodology... Read More

How Has Eminem Risen to the Top?

How is it that a little white boy from Kansas... Read More

How To Change Your Guitar Strings

Changing your guitar strings might make you feel a litte... Read More

Radio - What?s Happened To It?

Remember when radio stations played great music?OK, before you accuse... Read More

The Art Of Practicing - How To See Real Results

I have always believed that success, in practically any subject... Read More

Musicians Injuries: OUCH, It Hurts When I Play (But Please Dont Tell Me To Stop!)

This article takes a look at musicians' injuries. For an... Read More

Top Rap Song

After months of email and posts, we've finally compiled and... Read More

Piano Lessons For Adults: More Fun, Easier, & Faster Than Piano Lessons For Kids

Piano lessons for adults is generally LOTS more fun than... Read More

Guitar Tuning Tips

Most new guitar players and even some experienced ones have... Read More

Creating Caverns - an Improvisation Exercise

In a recent post to my Yahoo group, I mentioned... Read More

Warner Music Executive Payments

"In human life, art may arise from almost any activity,... Read More

How to Play What you Feel

Many students think that being able to play what you... Read More

Record Collecting Still Thriving in the Twenty-first Century

It may surprise many to find that the hobby of... Read More

Throat Singing In Inuit Culture

Originally, Inuit throat singing was a form of entertainment among... Read More

Try Some New Music!

Stuck in a music rut?It happens. After listening to your... Read More

CD Clubs: How to Get the Best Deals Online

(1) The BMG Music Service offers the best deal you'll... Read More

Killer Piano Playing Secrets of a Chord Addict!

I wish you could have seen me play the piano... Read More

Piano Lessons - Group or Private?

Piano lessons are a great activity for children. They encourage... Read More

Piano on the Right-Side of the Brain

Some of you may remember a book titled "Drawing on... Read More