21 Ear Training – Working With Intervals

Identifying Intervals, Eliminating Wrong Answers

This week, we will continue our study of intervals. One of the things that makes intervals challenging to identify is that they appear out of context. Therefore, we need a quick and easy method to identify them where we use imaginary contexts. This method can also help us to eliminate wrong answers.

One way to sort through information is to create a flow chart. For intervals, the first question you might ask is whether the interval is consonant or dissonant. After that, you can go into further detail, using solfege, context, and/or inversion to work out your answer. The flow chart below is just one example of the types of questions you can ask yourself. (For fun, make your own flow chart that starts with a different question, for example, “Is this interval present in any inversion of a major or minor triad?”)