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Ear Training With Triads 1

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Instructor
Yannick Lambrecht
Workshop
Beginner
Intermediate
01:45:35

Have you ever listened to a song and wondered what chords were being played? Learning to hear chords starts with triads, the simple three-note chords at the heart of most music. In this workshop, you’ll learn to tell major triads from minor triads by ear, then follow how chords change throughout a song. It’s one of the most valuable skills you can build as a musician, and anyone can learn it with the right approach.

You’ll practice with familiar songs, starting with simple ones like “When the Saints Go Marching In” and “Happy Birthday,” where you’ll listen for the moments the chords shift. These songs use the three most common chords in a key, which makes them a great place to start. Then you’ll take on more challenging examples, like the folk song “Shenandoah,” which uses a wider variety of chords.

Most importantly, you’ll learn a practical process for ear training that you can use with any song. You’ll learn to listen to the lowest note of each chord to follow the harmony, and to play chords one note at a time so you can hear each sound clearly instead of one big block of sound. By the end, you’ll have the tools and confidence to keep developing your ear on your own.

For software ear trainers, we recommend the following: Keyboard Relative Pitch, Note Relative Pitch, Intervals, Scales, Chords

Course Objectives
  • Hear the difference between major and minor triads
  • Identify major and minor chords in a variety of chord progressions
  • Follow the primary chords (I, IV and V) in songs like "When the Saints Go Marching In" and "Happy Birthday"
  • Recognize more advanced harmonies in folk songs like "Shenandoah"
  • Use a step-by-step ear training process, including listening to the bass note and arpeggiating chords
Learning Focus
  • Analysis
  • Ear Training
  • Exercises
  • Practice Tips
Featured Reviews

View PWJ member reviews of this course!

Good start point!
When you can use your ear and recognize each chord type and progressions, you feel like you have a new super power!
Fun even though a bit challenging
I enjoyed listening to chord progressions to identify them as in previous music theory exercises, it was more mathematical and following the rules of harmony.
New to me
Very interesting and new to me. Thanks for the introduction. I liked the links to use for practice.
More useful content than first imagined
Although basic, there are lots of pearls of great wisdom here. Yannick throws in useful snippets along with the book list. I’ve already ordered a copy of Csikszentmihalyi’s book on Flow. Sounds great. Thanks for that!
Great workshop!
In this workshop, Yannick clearly shows that you can also work with music without an instrument and how important it is to recognize intervals and chords. Figuring out and following the bass line has always been the first thing I did when figuring out the chords of a piece of music. It is very nice that this is highlighted in this workshop. Very fun and very educational!

Course Lessons

1
Ear Training With Triads 1 – Lesson 1
16:24

1 Chord Identification

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2
Ear Training With Triads 1 – Lesson 2
18:14

1 Chord Identification

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3
Ear Training With Triads 1 – Lesson 3
27:08

1 Chord Identification

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4
Ear Training With Triads 1 – Lesson 4
43:49

1 Chord Identification

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Featured Reviews

View PWJ member reviews of this course!

Good start point!
When you can use your ear and recognize each chord type and progressions, you feel like you have a new super power!
Fun even though a bit challenging
I enjoyed listening to chord progressions to identify them as in previous music theory exercises, it was more mathematical and following the rules of harmony.
New to me
Very interesting and new to me. Thanks for the introduction. I liked the links to use for practice.
More useful content than first imagined
Although basic, there are lots of pearls of great wisdom here. Yannick throws in useful snippets along with the book list. I’ve already ordered a copy of Csikszentmihalyi’s book on Flow. Sounds great. Thanks for that!
Great workshop!
In this workshop, Yannick clearly shows that you can also work with music without an instrument and how important it is to recognize intervals and chords. Figuring out and following the bass line has always been the first thing I did when figuring out the chords of a piece of music. It is very nice that this is highlighted in this workshop. Very fun and very educational!
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Learn how to quickly & easily transpose a lead sheet. Using the Number Chart method, we'll analyze a melody and chords, "convert" them to numbers, and apply the numbers to a new key.

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