Jazz Ear Training

Nine modes, real recorded piano and guitar, and a microphone that scores what you sing. Built on the University of Chicago perceptual-learning method — the one that actually moved adult ears in a controlled study.

Why this doesn't use sine beeps

Almost every ear trainer on the internet plays you a pure tone. Nothing on a bandstand is a pure tone. A sine wave has no overtones, which means it gives your ear nothing to grab — you end up training a skill that works in the app and evaporates the moment a piano player hits a chord.

These are real recorded samples: an overtone-rich piano and a real guitar, alternating deliberately so you cannot cheat by memorising one timbre. If you learn to name a note from a Salamander piano sample, you have learned something that survives contact with a real instrument.

Sing what you play — with a pass mark

The mic mode is the part most people skip and it is the part that works. Hear the interval, sing it before you touch the guitar, then find it on the fretboard. Singing forces the sound through your own body instead of letting your hands find it by shape memory.

The pass mark is measurable, not vibes: hold the pitch within ±20 cents for 800 ms. Start with diatonic 3rds and 7ths — the guide tones — because those are the notes that actually tell you what chord you are on.

The sets that matter for improvising

Guide tones in all twelve. The app plays a ii–V–I; you sing 3–7–3. Then find those same notes on a single string, so you are hearing intervals rather than grabbing shapes.

Secondary dominants. Hear a V/V resolve — A7 into D7 in the key of G — and learn to tag the ♭9 or ♯9 colour by ear before you name it on paper.

Lydian dominant. Recognise the ♯11 over a V7 by hearing the E major triad sitting on top of a C7. Once you can hear that, you can use it.

The interval cheat sheet — famous song references

Sing the song fragment, land the note on your guitar, then test it against the tool's real-tone playback. If you can sing it, you can play it.

Common questions

How long does it take to develop relative pitch?

Weeks to start feeling changes, months for real confidence. Ten honest minutes a day beats the marathon app session you'll quit by Thursday.

Can anyone learn perfect pitch?

As an adult, mostly no — and it doesn't matter. Chase functional pitch instead: hearing 3rds, 7ths and bass motion. That's what wins on a bandstand, and it's fully learnable.

Why can't I hear chord progressions?

You're listening to the top when the information is on the bottom. Sing the bass line first, then hear the 3rds and 7ths against it — the progression falls open.

How do I transcribe solos by ear?

Loop one or two bars. Sing it until it's yours, then find it on the guitar. Get the rhythm first, pitches second — phrasing is the part worth stealing.

Does singing actually help ear training?

It's the whole game. The voice is the shortest path between your ear and your hands — that's why this tool scores what you sing, not what you click.