To quickly review, the last four columns have covered the following approaches to ear training: singing the notes of major and minor scales while playing them; playing pairs of notes and identifying the intervallic relationships between the notes; learning to identify different chord qualities (types) solely by hearing them; singing in harmony with single-note riffs and patterns that you play; and trying to recreate “random” sounds on the guitar with your voice.

In This Part, I’ve got a really tricky exercise for anyone who’s up to the challenge. In previous columns, the exercises involved playing notes on the guitar and then singing the same notes immediately afterward. In this exercise, you’re going to do the opposite: you’ll sing the note first, then play it to verify your pitch accuracy.

Before we get to this exercise, let’s review the intervallic relationships between the notes of a major scale and the notes of a chromatic scale. FIGURE 1a illustrates a D major scale in two octaves. First, play and sing each scale degree simultaneously. Then, try to sing each pitch in the scale before playing it, as shown in FIGURE 1b. Do this repeatedly up and down the entire two-octave range of the scale while trying to stay aware of each pitch’s intervallic relationship to the root note.

Now let’s apply the same concept to the chromatic scale, depicted in FIGURE 1c. First play and sing each note simultaneously, and then, as shown in FIGURE 1d, sing each successive pitch before you play it. Do this repeatedly up and down the two-octave range of the scale too. You will notice that singing the chromatic pitches in succession is much tougher; as the notes are only half steps apart, it will take a keen sense of pitch to sing them right on the money.

Now let’s expand the exercise by picking the D note on the fifth string at the fifth fret and singing different intervals above it. As shown in FIGURE 2, pick the D note, then sing the note a fifth above it, which is A. Then play the A note at the seventh fret on the fourth string to verify if you have sung this pitch accurately. Now play the D note again and sing a major seventh above it, C#. After you’ve sung the C# note, check your pitch accuracy by playing the C# note at the sixth fret on the third string.

Another way to approach this same exercise is to say the intervallic name of the pitch while singing it. For example, play a low D and sing the A note above it on the word “fifth” or “five.” When singing C# above the low D, form the words “major seventh” or “seven.” If you do this for all of the pitches you sing, you’ll additionally fortify your knowledge of these intervallic relationships.

These exercises are difficult to master and will require much diligent practice. But start simply; don’t bite off more than you can chew, because you’ll only become frustrated. When you get to the point where you can do this exercise with a high degree of accuracy, your ears will have become quite sharp.

The point of these exercises is to deepen the connection between the notes you play on your instrument and the strength of your mental connection to the pitches you’re playing. Correctly singing intervals before you play them is the first step in putting the mind’s awareness of pitch recognition ahead of simply mimicking what you hear as it’s produced on the instrument. The next big step would be to eliminate the guitar completely and create an exercise of just singing everything, in which it is illegal” to pick up the guitar to check yourself. One fun thing to do is to memorize a favorite guitar solo, learn to sing it in its entirety and, instead of just singing the pitches, recite the interval names as you sing. FIGURE 3 illustrates an example of this approach.

Back when I played with Frank Zappa, I was faced with learning very difficult music in a short period of time. To help, I tried this technique: I’d record the music I needed to learn, and I’d set a timer on my tape player. Then, when I went to bed, I’d have the timer set to start the tape machine when I was sure to be sleeping. I believed that, in this way, I would actually be learning the music in my sleep: the tape would play, and all of this information would be entered into my subconscious. Now, I can’t say whether this really worked, but I was not nearly the musician that some of the guys in the band were, and I always seemed to have the music memorized faster than anyone else.

Check out part 4

Learn 5 Part Ear Training lesson from Legend Steve Vai

Check part 3 Of Ear Training Lesson here: Ear Training Lesson With Steve Vai – Part 3 – When Your Ears Become Really Good

In last column, I showed you a way to hone your pitch and interval recognition skills by singing in harmony with every note you play on the guitar. To review quickly, we began with a simple A minor pentatonic scale as our area of focus. As each note in the scale was played, we were to sing in harmony a fifth above that pitch: For example, when playing an A note on the sixth string at the fifth fret, we were to simultaneously sing the E note above it (corresponding to the E at the seventh fret on the fifth string); while playing a C note, fifth string, third fret, we were to sing the G note above it (corresponding to the G on the fourth string at the fifth fret).

As you recall, we then applied this concept to chromatic melodies with no particular harmonic base. In other words, I encouraged you to play random pitches on the guitar while consistently singing fifths above these pitches. This exercise is far more challenging than the first one and, accordingly, is that much more beneficial, if you’re up to doing it.

Now let’s expand this exercise to the interval of major thirds. A major third is the note two whole steps above another note, which we’ll call the primary tone—i.e., if the primary tone is G, the major third of G is B, two whole steps higher; if the primary tone is Bb, the major third is D, two whole steps higher.

FIGURE 1a depicts a G minor pentatonic scale (G Bb C D F), while FIGURE 1b illustrates this same scale harmonized in major thirds. First, play the basic scale up and down a bunch of times, while singing in unison with each pitch you play. Then play the harmonized pairs of notes shown in FIGURE 1b while simultaneously singing the thirds above. Next, play only the single-note scale as shown in FIGURE 1a while singing the major third above each note. If you’re unsure of the notes you’re supposed to sing, refer to FIGURE 1b.

Once you feel you’re able to do this, proceed to FIGURES 1c and 1d. Remember, play only the lower note of each major third interval while singing the higher note (shown in parentheses). Start slowly and be sure to sing each harmonized pitch as purely and accurately as possible. Pick up the tempo as you become more comfortable, and then try branching off into your own permutations. I tell ya, you’ll amaze your friends!

Let’s now apply this study to the interval of a fourth. A fourth is the note located two and a half steps above the primary tone—i.e., if the primary tone is G, the fourth is C, two and a half steps higher; if the primary tone is Bb, the fourth is Eb, two and a half steps higher.

FIGURE 2a illustrates the G minor pentatonic scale harmonized in fourths. As you did in the previous examples, first play the harmonized pairs of notes while simultaneously singing the higher note of each pair (the fourth). Next, play only the lower note, which is the single-note scale shown in FIGURE 1a, while singing the fourth above each note as you play it.

You’ll probably find singing the fourth above each note more challenging than singing the fifth or major third, so it may take more practice and patience to get a firm grip on it. Once you get the hang of this, try playing and singing the harmonized melodies depicted in FIGURES 2b and 2c. Again, be sure to sing each harmonized pitch as purely and accurately as possible, and increase the tempo a little each time you practice the exercises.

As you get your ear chops together, don’t be afraid to venture off into unknown territory. Try expanding this concept to the interval of a minor third (one and a half steps above the primary tone) or a tritone (three whole steps above the primary tone), or even a minor ninth (six and one half steps — or an octave plus a half step – above the primary tone). But don’t bite off more than you can chew; anyone trying this for the first time may find it difficult just getting from one note to another while singing intervals of thirds or fourths above. If so, work with two notes only, and then expand to three notes. Who knows — you might even come up with something cool that you end up using in a hit song!

Now close this magazine and start playing and singing everything you play. You can even close your eyes and look to the ceiling. Try bouncing between intervals. Also, try to make odd sounds with your voice or words and attempt to get the guitar to mimic these sounds. And if you do write a hit song, I get half the publishing. Well…maybe not.

Check final lesson from this series : Ear Training Lesson- Part 5 – Now Hear This