Why am I struggling to hear scale degrees?

[christopher-suttonKeymaster]

Hi @blanche_minim-2,

Thanks for coming back to share your progress! And it does sound like good progress…

One idea which may help: mix up your training a bit. It’s good to persist with the same tools or methods while you’re making solid progress, but if you find your improvement is stalling or you’re getting bored of doing the same exercises each session, it can help to find other ways to approach the same skills.

There’s a bit more discussion of this here.

I think you’ve already tried a few different approaches to learning scale degrees (software, singing while you play, training CDs, etc.) and I’d encourage you to keep exploring, and in particular to keep looking for ways to make your exercises “musically meaningful”. Like the lightbulb moment you had on your road trip, connecting the abstract skills to real music can go a long way for your motivation, inspiration and in turn your progress too.

Keep up the good work!

[blanche_minim-2Participant]

Hi Chris,
I am progressing well in my Melody Dictation software. I’m just breezing thru the Pentatonic scales. Will get finished with all the Major Pentatonic keys soon.

I am now using Ear Master 6. I am using this software because of its sight-singing and melody imitation feature. Melody imitation means a melody is played and I have to sing back the melody. I try to sing the solfege syllables, rather than just humming the melody.

I mentioned a while ago that I was inspired by guitar players, who can play on their instrument what they are singing. Basically they are playing what they hear in their head while singing the pitches. I am doing sight-singing because not for the sake of it, but to have the ability to just listen to any melody and then associate it with solfege syllables.

Do you think that by practicing sight-singing and imitating melodies with solfege will help me one day to recognize melodies instantly?

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