crispyagain
110 posts
Dec 05, 2015
9:41 AM
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Are there some of you who can just hear a song and know what key its in or even get within a key or two just by listening. If so, how do you do it ? Is it just God given gift or what ? I have to go through harps to find the key. Thanks
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timeistight
1909 posts
Dec 05, 2015
11:58 AM
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People with perfect pitch can identify notes just by listening, without reference to an instrument. I can't do that, but I can find the key of most songs quickly. Here's how:
1) Know where you are in the chord progression, or at least by able to identify which chord is the I chord.
2) Get the tonic note (I.e., the root note of the I chord) in your mind. Maybe even sing it to yourself.
3) Grab a harp where you know the layout without thinking about it. If you don't know the notes on any harps, you need to at least learn the C harp to do this.
4) Start testing the notes on the against the tonic note you memorized in step 2. On your C harp you have C, D, E, F, G, A, and B as natural notes, Db, F#, Bb and Ab as simple draw bends and Eb as a blow bend. Test them in turn.
That sounds like a lot to do, but once you get good at it, you can usually find the key in a few seconds.
Last Edited by timeistight on Dec 05, 2015 12:00 PM
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Littoral
1304 posts
Dec 05, 2015
12:12 PM
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Hum it and practice.
I've gotten good at it but I've never quite figured out what people mean by perfect pitch, except there's no way I have it.
Years of playing is probably part of "how" for me. I watch for guitar chords if it sounds weird but what I do first is hum it and make sure it resonates through my throat and jaw. I'll usually do it 2 or three times and then pick what I think it is. I'm right most of the time -or off by a fifth.
Last Edited by Littoral on Dec 05, 2015 12:12 PM
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nacoran
8801 posts
Dec 05, 2015
5:36 PM
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I use a combination of whether it's a high key or low key and the circle of fifths. If I'm keying a bunch of songs I lay my harps out by the circle and start playing. If it sounds good I try the harps on either side of it. If it sounds really bad I jump to the far side of the circle.
Perfect pitch is a mix of innate talent and work. I can sing a note back and I can usually pick out a melody on a harp if I know the melody well enough to whistle it, but that's just relative pitch. I have to have the right key harp in front of me. Perfect pitch is much rarer. I don't think the harp is a great instrument to learn it on. If you are on a piano you see where your hands are and start to associate that with the pitch, but not only do you not see where your lips are on a harp the notes change when you pick up a different key.
For covers of popular songs if you are stumped you can always Google it. There is even some software that will tell you the key by analyzing the music (Windows Media Player used to have a plugin that did it, but it hasn't been updated in a long time). Another useful trick, once you do know the key, is to edit the metadata on your media player to list it. (The field is usually hidden by default and usually blank, but it's there and editable). That gives you the option to instantly sort playlists by key, which is really useful for practicing.
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Nate
Facebook
Thread Organizer (A list of all sorts of useful threads)
First Post- May 8, 2009
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Mirco
336 posts
Dec 06, 2015
12:22 PM
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ME.HarpDoc: That's funny. That joke must go around. Just two weeks ago, James Harman told me that perfect pitch is when you throw your harmonica in the toilet.
When I asked him for some musical advice, he said, "Throw your harmonicas in the trash." Funny guy.
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Marc Graci
YouTube Channel
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PeterG
45 posts
Dec 06, 2015
6:06 PM
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I've lost track of how many times I've played with guitarists who've jumped into songs without calling out a key (or telling only the bass player). It helps if you can see what chords the guitarist is fretting, then count to up to the fret location and determine the key. Count up half steps for each fret from the open E string if barre chords are being used, or from the open A string if not.
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Littoral
1306 posts
Dec 06, 2015
8:41 PM
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You can do it.
Hum the pitch and say what you think it is.
Do it again.
And again.
It's actually not too difficult (I think).
Hum the pitch and say what you think it is.
You can do it.
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Goldbrick
1209 posts
Dec 07, 2015
6:15 AM
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Like Littoral said hum the note-that the song seems to resolve on. Grab a C harp and play a first position scale to you get close.
Blues in general like E and A
Springsteen , Dylan, Jimmy Buffett etc D or G
Country, Southern Rock G , C
Johnny Cash F
Bluegrass G
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mlefree
468 posts
Dec 07, 2015
10:37 AM
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I can usually tell what general range a tune is in (low, medium, high). I take a harp in the range of the song and softly draw hole 2, cupping it against my ear. If it sounds dissonant against the chords being played, I choose another harp. When draw 2 sounds good, I have the right key.
As Goldbrick points out, prior knowledge of which keys are commonly played in a given genre is indispensable.
Michelle
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SilverWing Leather - Custom leather creations for musicians and other eccentrics.
Last Edited by mlefree on Dec 07, 2015 10:39 AM
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STME58
1479 posts
Dec 07, 2015
12:18 PM
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I cheat, I carry a tuner in my pocket so I can pull it out, sing the tonic into it and read the key.
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STME58
1480 posts
Dec 07, 2015
12:24 PM
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PeterG, I agree that understanding other instruments can give you valuable clues. I have been leading a group of middle school musicians and was trying to teach them to learn a tune by ear. One of the trumpet players was doing very well and I asked him how he had learned it. He told me he was just watching my trombone slide and he knew which trumpet fingerings corresponded to which slide position. Smart kid! (I just realized, the kids dad plays trombone)
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Mahcks
59 posts
Dec 07, 2015
1:23 PM
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I can usually get close if I can see the guitar player's fretting hand. It's not a bad idea to be familiar with a fretted instrument. Beyond that, my experience has gotten me to a point where I can tell that I've picked the wrong key. It's definitely an improvement, and I anticipate that I'll get better with time.
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Harmonicatunes
136 posts
Dec 07, 2015
1:44 PM
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I wrote an article on this a while back, available here
If you know just a little guitar, then you can generally figure out the key by watching the guitar players hands.
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Tony Eyers
Australia
www.HarmonicaAcademy.com
everyone plays...
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timeistight
1910 posts
Dec 07, 2015
4:18 PM
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Another way to find the key is by position. Grab a Bb harp (for example) and try first, second and third position. Do the same thing with a G harp, E harp and finally Db harp until you find the harp and position that works. Of course, the more positions you know,the few harps you need to try.
Whichever method you like, you'll get much faster if you practice. Sit down with your favourite radio station or streaming service and see how fast you can find the key of a string of unknown tunes. The moreyou do it, the faster you'll get.
Last Edited by timeistight on Dec 07, 2015 4:19 PM
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STME58
1481 posts
Dec 07, 2015
5:19 PM
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At a song circle I sometimes attend the key is sometimes called like this "G chords with a capo on the 3rd fret". I think next time it is my turn I may call my key as "C harp in 4th position"!
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