How to play piano by ear?
How to play piano by ear - After learning for a few months, when you have a good understanding of scales and chords, and when you can play simple songs, it would be a good idea to start playing few songs be ear i.e. songs for which there is no written music; you have to figure out how to play the song only by listening to the song. Lot of learners get so much used to playing songs from sheets that they are not sure on how to play piano by ear.
Try it out
There are no sure ways to learn to play by ear; the only method is by trying it out. Initially it may be trial and error and it may take some time for you to figure out the notes of a song, but as you keep on doing it, your ears become good at sensing relative pitch. You just have to figure out a few notes and then finding the rest of the notes become easy. The more songs you play by ear, the better you get at it. Knowing the scales also helps since most of the songs are based on them. If you figure out a few notes, finding the other notes become easy if you know the scales well.
Break it down
It means take a few bars at a time. Listen to few bars and then try to play those notes. If the passage is difficult, you may have to listen to it many times before you get it right. Stick to it and you will get it right; this is the secret of how to play piano by ear! You will need to reduce the tempo to a level where you can play the difficult passage easily. Proceed ahead to the next section only when you are able to play it without any mistake for at-least 3 consecutive times. Finally, play through the entire song.
Ear training
You will find lot of software available, which will help you to train your ears so that you become good at playing by ear. Many of these are free; the better ones can be used for a trial period to help you to decide if you should go ahead with the purchase.
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