Ear Training: Summary

Here is an overview of all the notes related to a root including their solfège and sargam syllables. Depending on whether we are talking about scalar or chordal structures, seconds, fourths and sixth may also be referred to as ninths, elevenths and sixteenths.

I recommend you to practice singing any melodic structure you want to learn accompanied by the root, the root and fifth or the basic chords as described in this chapter before practicing them on the instrument.

Beware that all the syllables are relative in nature. If your key is C, do/sa is C. If your key is E, do/sa is E. If you are singing on a chord progression, your do/sa changes from chord to chord.

Also beware of the difference between the harmonic relation of a note to the key, which is what this chapter is about, and the interval as the distance between two notes. In the key of C, the harmonic functions of E and G are the major third and the perfect fifth, but the interval between E and G is a minor third, regardless of the key.