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Suggestions for practice  
Gawaine J. Banks  
Tip 1: Toning vocal muscles  
Tip 2: Using (free) audio editing software that allows us to  
be more specific in how we practice  
Tip 3: Recognizing chords and using chord progression  
to find your pitch  
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I. Vocal exercise  
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II. Using software that allows us to be more specific in how  
we play back music when practicing  
Play the recording faster  
– to become aware of the melodic, harmonic and  
rhythmic “shape” of the entire work  
– later, this helps us to better know what is coming  
when we’re singing at a normal tempo  
Play it slower  
– our usual way of learning notes  
Repetition (Looping)  
–learning/practicing short segments of music using  
audio editing software that allows frequent  
“hands off” repetition  
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Audacity Audio Editor (free)  
https://audacityteam.org  
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Example: Audacity  
Drag mp3 file into Audacity’s  
work area  
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It will open a wave file that looks like this:  
Press play  
As the music plays, note what the clock indicates at beginning and  
end of section you want to practice  
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Fast Playback  
4. Press square to stop  
3. Hit play  
1. Place cursor in waveform  
area, then right-click mouse  
and choose “Pitch and speed”  
from drop-down menu  
2. Choose speed you want  
(I recommend 130 – 150%)  
Example:  
Press to play  
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Playback to practice a specific section  
1. Let the music play from beginning to end, note what the digital clock at  
bottom indicates for the beginning and end of the section you want to practice  
2. Select that area by sliding your mouse cursor  
4. Green arrow to  
play, square to stop  
Example:  
Press to play  
3. Press the “loop” button  
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III. Using chords to find your pitch  
A. Piano keyboards for your computer  
I. Free online piano:  
https://midipiano.freewebtools.net/  
Needs an external midi keyboard controller (a "piano" without any sound - plays through your computer)  
Examples of external midi keyboards:  
2. MIDIPLUS AKM320 USB MIDI Keyboard Controller, Black, 32-key  
$39.00  
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00VHKMK64?tag=highlightreviews-346873-20&th=1  
3. Nektar 49-Key Midi Controller  
$89.00  
https://www.amazon.com/Nektar-SE49-49-Key-Controller-Keyboard/dp/B01MF9EJPG/ref=sr_1_3  
4. Nektar 61 Note USB MIDI Keyboard Controller  
$129.90  
https://www.amazon.com/Nektar-Impact-GX61-Controller-Keyboard/dp/B01EN0FWUU/ref=sr_1_2  
II. Online piano – free (played with computer keys, no external midi keyboard needed  
https://www.onlinepianist.com/virtual-piano  
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First, simple ear training for chords  
B. Hearing chords rather than just individual notes/intervals  
I. Most of us have learned parts by individual notes  
A 4th interval is = “hear comes the bride”  
Solfege  
(“Do-re-mi…” the syllables are assigned to scale degrees, with "do" always the first degree of the major scale)  
II. Also important: recognizing 2-note intervals as a single dyad and 3-4-5 (etc.) note chords as a  
single sound.  
Helps me more confidently sing my note(s) on pitch because I hear them as part of the “whole” sound  
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Three , 4 and 5 note chords and their inversions  
If I can recognize some of the chords which precede and include our note,  
I more easily find my note in the context of the “movement” of chords in the music.  
I learn to “feel” what is the chord progression and “feel” where and in what kind of chord  
my notes sound (don’t have to memorize all the cord names)  
Inversions and extensions give movement and color (like adverbs) to the music (verbs).  
They help the music move forward smoothly, so practice hearing chords in  
root and inverted positions  
1-4-5 Progression/resolution - all in root position  
(usually awkward sounding)  
1-4-5 Progression/resolution with some inversions  
(smoother movement – more likely to be in our music  
Triads  
7th chords  
Tonic omitted  
9th degree  
chord  
extensions  
Tonic omitted  
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III. Using chord progression to find your pitch  
I can hear that the progression leads to an (inverted) A minor chord which  
gives me my starting pitch  
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More simply – play the downbeat chords of preceding measures  
Again, I can hear that the progression leads to an (inverted) A minor  
chord which gives me my starting pitch