Unlock Your Ear (The Most Effective Ear-Training Drill I Know)

[@eagles_s]

I honestly didnt learn a thing till i literally spent 5 hours a night playing along to every song on my itunes playlists. Then i started listening to music and humming like crazy. I not only learned how to play guitar but to sing and play piano. Its amazing. I literally find myself automatically gravitating to pitches. Its wierd. The humming is what I think finally locked everything together. Within a span of a month(after 5 years of unfocused dabbling with tabs and theory) i was able to discern intervals and ever the qualities of tones in a scale. I can totally hear maj 7ths and extentions, tonal changes etc. Honestly i saw this video and couldnt believe it because everything in here I picked up in bits and pieces. The drone notes, the humming. I hope people watch this and realize this is the "one big secret" video. I wish you had made this 5 years ago, but honestly figuring it out myself is probably what made me successful.

[@grace-4072]

man you're totally describing what i'm going through rn! i'm kind of in the middle of it but i've been playing for almost three years and am finally really getting it lol

[@homeguitarplayer9482]

Sure would like to see and hear you demonstrate that in a video. Watching and hearing you progress over time helps people like me who are struggling.

[@moustafagamal8930]

how did you know if there is a chord in the song you are trying to play?

[@diyniperera]

Thank you for this

[@darrenweston1618]

I can't do the ear part at all I play songs and try and find the root but nothing Even if I hit the root I've no idea I've hit it Same if I try and vocalise, no idea at all Tried using tuners but they just jump around so I'm still unaware There must be a proper training tool, tech, that tells u when u miss the note and by how much If there isn't, can any of u program? Lol

[@nicolasnasr945]

Started learning by ear a week ago after playing guitar for a year and damn does it feel amazing when you figure out a song and then go back to the tabs just to see that you are absolutely wrong, but NOT actually because the notes sounds the same you are just playing them abother place on the fretboard. It's absolutely amazing and motivating

[@estranged85]

Or you learned that the tabs was actually wrong 😄

[@luckytheunlucky1157]

They got us the first half not gonna lie

[@visitur4914]

Ear training was my reason for getting out of bed this past Spring, tbh. It was the first thing I did every morning, for 45 minutes, five days a week for two months. It was fun to see my progress day by day, and the results were crazy! Do it at least 15-20 minutes a day for at least a month, and you will play music differently, hear music differently, sing music differently, and write music differently.

[@ozzy3933]

wow i thought it took years or smt, this is highly encouraging thank you 😊 hope you're still practicing 👀

[@sesesesesese7320]

i wanted to do ear training so badly. thank you for giving me the inspiration! I'm 21 years old and im kinda sulking why did I only learned how to ear train at this age.

[@sesesesesese7320]

can i ask what application or videos did you use? the surreal amt of info in the internet is overwhelming

[@cheeseontoast3434]

@@sesesesesese7320 just use any tuner you'll find, like a real tuner you already have or an app. i use this old tuner i found but it works well

[@nigelmadeley7798]

I tried the Rick Beato course. I had to stop on lesson 3: distinguishing between M2 and m2 played harmonically. I did the practice and took the test 21 times for an average of 58% and no signs of getting better (one of my last marks was 40%). I think your musical background (even just whether parents listened to music) and whether you have tuned into sound from an early age makes a difference. I once asked a member of a choir how he sang in tune and he looked at me as if it was a stupid question. It wasn’t and I can’t. I’ve never tuned into sound in the way that some people never ‘tune into’ maps (I do). I even stuggle with early Dylan where it’s in G and C with an occasional D. I just don’t ‘hear’’ the chords.

[@theenki8387]

I like Mike's videos the most, honestly this guy simply starts his videos not by seeking for subscriptions or notifications, he just starts. One of the few guys I don't really mind having the "patreons" :D

[@magnusboesen5389]

I've been playing guitar for over ten years now, always complaining about my bad ear. All I do is improvise, having fun and it works great too, i can solo for hours, but i never could identify chords or single tones very well. This is exactly what i needed. Feels easy, natural even. To be fair i know i have been training my ear without knowing, but i now i know exactly how. Thank you so much.

[@amg_0302]

I have been studying ear Training for so long and this, by far, is the best method. Awesome lesson as usual.

[@hunterprice3320]

I'd just like to say that your video that's should be everyone's first guitar lesson made me have the confidence to start guitar I bought my first guitar a couple weeks ago and I'm having a blast with it

[@louistown7835]

How is it going?

[@KingSlimeProductions]

THIS, I regret not focusing on my ears earlier. But better late than never :) I hope your progress is going good

[@chrishudson4940]

I started Mikes program nov 2019, i am closing in on the end of lessons in the first section. I have had some lack of patience, and felt like i was stuck, took a break from lessons and just jammed and noodled around. Honestly was thinking of cancelling my script, I was better but just something was missing. I went back to the " section 1 practice area" at the end of section 1, and realized what i didnt learn....i thought i would have an exercise down and felt confident i had it and it faded away bc i wasnt practicing. Im back now brushing up on what i didnt retain and am much happier now, i know more than i thought, but knowledge and application are 2 different things, still working on the application parts haha. Thanks Mike!!!

[@hunterprice3320]

@@louistown7835 Its going pretty good. I'm definitely no expert player or anything but I've learned alot since I started thats for sure.

[@hunterprice3320]

@@KingSlimeProductions Yes I definitely need to get better with my ears. Lately I've been trying to learn more about modes and songwriting. But your ear is definitely one of the most important things and unfortunately I'm not so great at using it yet.

[@RT-uc3ef]

Protip: Do this exercise while practicing inversions and learn to pick out the root 3rd and fifth in different positions down the neck. Sing the note as well

[@connorclark2805]

What does that mean

[@phaedrus6891]

@@connorclark2805 do the same exercise with different notes on the bottom. CEG the EGC then GCE for a C major chord. Root(C) 3rd (E) and 5th (G).

[@dylanhayashi8977]

@@phaedrus6891 what guitar knowledge is necessary to know what you’re talking about? I’m so invested into learning but don’t know where to start SOS

[@Jakevalk1812]

@@dylanhayashi8977 you need to know your triad fingerings. There are 3: root, 1st inversion, 2nd inversion. They change for what set of strings you are playing on:123, 234, 345, 456. The shapes for 345 and 456 are the same. look up a lesson, start with the major triads

[@lebulle4544]

You just blew my mind dude. It's like I was blind my whole life and now I can see.

[@rufusotoole3903]

This is honestly the easiest way I've ever heard learning ear training explained. Thank you

[@TheMidnightModder]

One of my ear training exercises is just tuning by ear

[@jboy8735]

That’s what I do as well and it does help just takes time and patience

[@ericdavis8875]

Yes! Needed this like 30 years ago, but this'll have to do, lol! Totally hearing it. You RRRRRROCK MIKE! P.S. For pollen allergies: the stuff builds up in the back of your throat then works it way into the sinuses. The key is drinking, not for hydration, but to keep washing the pollen down so it doesn't build up. STRIKE TRUE BARBARIC ERIC

[@hawkgeoff]

Brother... I've played for over 40 years, but could NEVER sing. My wife even bought me voice lessons from a local college with an excellent music dept for Christmas one year... the instructor, at the end of a couple months, told me to just stick with guitar...lol But this... kind of embarrassed after playing so long, was brilliant... thanks.

[@jwalters8498]

Fantastic lesson, looking forward to doing it in the site.

[@sniffe223]

I just want to say thank you so much. Every single video of ear training they just say that you should try and figure out song. But this. This is diffrent

[@luvsic35]

Was trying to learn the solo to La Villa Strangiato by ear today, I got a good chunk through, however it really opened my eyes to how bad my ears were.

[@yeetfeet1878]

I’m currently trying to learn it on drums what a coincidence 😆

[@yeetfeet1878]

And I’m done now. 😂

[@salildeshpande7]

@@yeetfeet1878 damn, you learned it in 4 days.. nice

[@polyo4038]

He learned it on drums though, barbarism!

[@isaaharel3395]

I do this with chord books it really fun I love ear training it my favourite practice I feel more close to my guitar thanks for the tip

[@MTDesolator]

This really helps a lot. Playing for years and really had troubles hearing out specific notes. Thx this definitely made my day :)

[@nicost72]

I'll totally use it with my students. Thanks man!!!

[@isaacjohnson.]

Great lesson Mike! I have been looking at improving my ear training and this was an excellent addition. Thank you.

[@terrydummitt]

Thank you for this.... definitely a missing piece of the puzzle for me and my playing.. this starts me onto a whole other level..

[@damonballagh970]

A tip for this that I found to help is if your having trouble hearing the note you want, play all 3 notes and mute the other notes by the bridge with your picking hand, you’ll be able to realize if your hearing the correct note or not because it will now be the only one left ringing.

[@damonballagh970]

I would always humm the solos to songs or instrumentals, my friends and band mates thought it was weird but now I’m realizing how important that really is.

[@LukeJ4ckson]

Hey, this is a great exercise to train your ear. I'm going to use it on guitar and piano since fretted notes on the guitar are slightly off-pitch because the guitar uses equal temperament.

[@Teckiels24]

Piano uses equal temperament too just so you know

[@LukeJ4ckson]

@@Teckiels24 True but because of how fretting works every fretted note is slightly sharp or flat. Whereas this isn't the case on piano because there is a string for each note.

[@djpenton779]

Excellent! I am encouraged to know that I am not alone in finding middle notes hard to identify.

[@JCFern]

This is an ear-opener of a lesson Mike! I discovered that I definitely have a personal tendency like most to hear the high note in a triad the most. But yes the humming exercise definitely helped me “tune” my ear towards homing on a specific frequency of the triad. Out of this lesson, I thought I’d do a variation of this exercise, and start playing a power chord, but “fill in the blank” by humming in the Third. I want to see if I can use my vocals together with a guitar to render a triad accurately in both Major and minor qualities…

[@jansestak954]

Yup, this is so important. Thanks for bringing it up, man!

[@radoslavcap4790]

Thanks!

[@WailFin]

Trying to transcribe chords into midi software (musescore and TuxGuitar) has helped me get a feel, just singing or playing a note I THINK is in there, maybe a seventh if what I've transcribed doesn't sound quite the same as the actual music. I still find it surprisingly easy to miss a 3rd, and I play acoustic, so distortion isn't usually an excuse unless I'm trying to arrange something specifically so I can play it, but speaking of thirds, I find playing the movable F shape means you get three of the most consonant interval (Octaves/same pitch class), 2 of the second most consonant interval (fifth) and by placing and removing your pinky you get the least consonant interval, whether it be the major or minor third, and I like to alternate between major and minor to hear the difference and pick out the third(s) that way. I also like to harmonize with different objects, starting with a fifth, then the fourth, then trying thirds. Electric toothbrushes, razors, the other day I was vacuuming and I managed to sing a fourth below the vacuum cleaner (so I was singing the "root" and the vacuum was a fifth above that) and it made the interval come out a lot clearer compared to the many relatively inharmonic partials the noise of the vacuum consists of, and it's a weird feeling, all right.

[@Rbbuckler]

Thank you, thank you, thank you. In the short time listening to the video I was amazed I started to hear the separation. Now for more practice

[@justyouraveragenotasociopa3493]

I have dyslexia and how I learned drums growing up was training my music ears because I couldn't read notes. Now as an adult I can learn songs by listening to them and figure out chords pretty easily.

[@oliverk191]

My dad taught me solfege, and I picked up the "humming technique" from him. He used to hum the melody and work out the chords. This, combined with a little theory on chord structure makes playing the guitar a lot more fun. Im still stumped at some of the chord variations my dad comes up with to transform a song.

[@philipjones7372]

Nice one Mike, looking forward for more 👍🏼

[@ski5150]

FANTASTIC video Mike … FAN- EFFING-TASTIC!!

[@onieonieonieonie]

I am learning from your video, and that's why I will come back surely. God bless

[@jimmccall8030]

Very useful. Thanks

[@mikestroud9969]

Thanks man just woke up. Coffee now ☕☕. Then headed to gym. I saved going to check this out later. Take care 👍💯✌️🎸

[@homeguitarplayer9482]

Outstanding, thanks for bringing things together on how to use ear training with playing guitar.

[@AndrewParente09]

so grateful this video popped up this is exactly what I was looking for.

[@chadharr3733]

Hey man i love your videos your my favourite teacher on youtube cuz i feel i can connect with your story the most

[@evanarcega9509]

Haven't seen this one before, good stuff

[@ChiqueChiing]

Wow! U r great! Thank u so much I have been trying to ear train myself finally after 15yrs of playing smh and unsuccessfully n becuz of it I lose interest in playing cuz of the struggle Lol ^talk about a circle of fiths 😂 the humming and playing to ear train is like what I needed to hear today ! Got my lil notes of ur lesson also I won't forget!!

[@Halenrocks5150]

One of your best lessons yet!!!!

[@anmolsingh9694]

Thanks a lot this is after ages I got interested to ear training again after being a fingerstyle guitarist not having a good ear was little difficult but this helps a lot in that .

[@GRUNGETIME1]

Great video! Really shows ones again that the most simple things develop our musical consciousness in such deep way and also points out the importence of our musical ear. Everything has to get its attention time to time although it can be annoying or rough. Thanks for this re-realization ! ( hopefully my english isnt too bad, no native speaker here =))

[@trinetra2011]

This is so concise and helpful. Can't believe it's available for free here. This is a golden lesson. Looks very basic, but will actually take you a long way. I've been training my ear by myself while listening to solos from songs but needed a routine to actually practice ear training everyday. You've boosted my musical skills with this video :")

[@brinojrvijayan5202]

Awesome lesson.. Thank You

[@Homie3794]

C major is one of the only triads I can recognize the notes of because of Home Sweet Home by Motley Crue

[@RobbieFitzgerald]

Somehow I read that as Sweet Home Alabama by Motley Crue and had to do a double take.

[@Gwyn1stborn]

"Isn't that wild?" I love this guy

[@wlr1988]

This is an amazing video!

[@Gs-nc4jx]

Thank you man, great lesson

[@kostantismp3704]

10+ years im playing by ear its so amazing

[@hexaltoor2814]

Fun fact, if someone plays a chord like Cmajor, I will always pick the last note, in this case G. That is how I get songs lol

[@josephfish6593]

Good stuff I think this will help me a lot.

[@visitur4914]

I'm a 39 year old who learned one song on guitar twenty years ago, but never got past that. This past Spring, I practiced guitar two hours a day, plus ear training for 45 minutes, plus singing for 45 minutes. I did that for just two months, then stopped when I got sick. Ear training is the biggest super power! I've composed a bunch of stuff already, including one that I tuned to a strange tuning by ear. It's called "Shake House Grandma." Here's the link: m.kzbin.info/www/bejne/kJ-4qpKEeNSAitE I haven't yet gotten back to that hardcore schedule, but I'm still working and improving every day!

[@carlosdurand1522]

Wow it seriously worked!! Thank you!!

[@sanchezjean38]

Wow!! Amazing. Thanks so much!

[@makennapainter3200]

I loooovvvvveeee this video!!!!!! Thank you so much!

[@Glacier_Beatboxx]

Hell yea that’s trippy, I really needed this

[@mrunit7261]

Whoa! Good job!

[@dam7196]

I downloaded this to listen to while I drive because it is that good

[@KipIngram]

I do think it's good training just to sit down with your keyboard or your guitar and "suss stuff out." I'm woefully less skilled than I'd like to be in terms of ability on any instrument, but I was always able to melodies together on my guitar pretty well. And you speak the truth - the more you do it, the easier it gets.

[@evolvin12]

I find it helpful to sing "Heee" as well as Humming. Give it try......Thanks for this Great video!

[@sethrose1325]

Great video thanks

[@acidkat368]

i didn’t realize when i was teaching my self piano i was training my ears, now that i’m learning guitar i was hoping i can do the same!

[@Thomas-cs2rr]

Is there a complete ear training course? I thought I was trying deaf until I just watched this video. Thank you! I'm thinking about buying a guitar because of this!

[@TheArtofGuitar]

It’s available but is being built by the week. So far we have a handful of videos and more are being added.

[@KyleCanessa]

Thank you!!

[@leemarcescover2739]

What the!!! Should have watched this before, very helpfull!

[@williammartin1081]

Thank you!

[@tonakkie635]

Great idea, thanks👍🏻

[@offthatwood]

Hey! I’m a 13 year old guitarist and I was wondering what would be a intermediate metal song to do with a backing track. (Full song) Let me know a good metal song for that

[@143jcm]

that sg is so nice

[@RJ_HTx]

I learn by ear but I still buy the “official” books as a reference only especially for chords.

[@masu2372]

Thank you very much Markiplier! I din't know that you could play the Agugus Yogis guitar! Being serius, this was very helpful, i actually know what cords are playing in a song ( kinda ) Thanks!

[@calliloden2619]

this is awesome - is helping

[@KingSlimeProductions]

Is there a way I can take this to the next level? Should I just play the chords ascending in the scale? Should I try chromatic notes too?

[@Throbenheimer]

nice

[@matthewweeks6891]

Is there a Playlist for all of these videos? I've been looking for an ear training course that focuses on naming the notes and chords. The most popular audiobook on this seems to only compare minor and major chords without naming them and I don't understand. Thank you for this beginner version

[@ocr3012]

The most effective ear training drill I know is this. Record yourself playing 2 random chords (literally any chord with random tensions) for 2 measures every day. Repeat this process until you have at least 10 mins of random chords. Then try to improvise melodically as possible. It's very effective and extremely difficult. The only downside of this is that it takes a while to complete 10 mins of chord progression.

[@martinmucha4858]

Thank you so much

[@abbiasante]

I actually love you

[@Longrangetargets]

I tune my guitar by humming an A and then once my a string is in tune I tune the rest of my strings to it. Weird I know but it works. G to me sounds like a semi honking its horn lol.

[@landonboyd6630]

The best way that can explain the middle one is to sorta look for the e in the back bc I hear the e last in the chord

[@GormlyKeep]

I found that just jamming a lot developed my ear really quickly

[@OPPAIDEMON]

thanks for this video is hard for me to hear what exactly what I’m playing so thank you 👍🤟

[@RishhadDave]

Solid

[@MDRN_ANMLS]

It's not possible to like this enough

[@emoses]

Life lesson

[@flamecrew9atroblox958]

This was cool. Thanks where do i go from here

[@karlos_taylor]

Once you get this down what's the next thing to do? The same for different Triads in different chords?

[@thatcherdoingcoolstuff2657]

Thanks, my ear really sucks and I’ve been trying to get better at different aspects of music theory

[@dancash5353]

Bro r u psychic

[@johnmichaelgalapin4849]

"singing freaks people out sometimes" Yes I'm one of them

[@anthonylove821]

So how do you know what the songs are tuned in? Most rock songs are in standard E but many kiss songs are tuned differently? So generally speaking is there an easy way to tell how each song is tuned?

[@meeserbaker]

I did something similar but with a scale starting on the low a and humming along to internalize the pitches to help with my terrible singing lol and helped tons but it didnt click that its gonna help my ear too. Different motives multipke results so thank you. I probly should've noticed sounding out rose tattoo by dropkick was almost automatic

[@haysontasher1781]

Thank you. I want to play every song I want to play by ear.

[@KipIngram]

Lmao... "forever ago." With you sitting there looking so young. :-) Trust me - I'm 58, and "forever ago" gets a LOT bigger as time goes by.

[@ericfrate2124]

It's funny that the third is actually so hard to hear compared to the root and the fifth. Well that note technically determines if it's major or minor. But then again I guess you kind of figured it out by the feel of the chord

[@kerk3318]

What is that piece on your bridge?

[@MichaelDHockenberry]

A broken Vibratones tailpiece

[@TheArtofGuitar]

Duesenberg Les Trem II

[@ChrisJohnson-yz4so]

Nice tips :) I was wondering if You were working on a New artist video ? ( Eric Johnson maybe ?)