Ear Trainer
Ear Trainer
Train your musical ear. Identify what you hear or play it on the keyboard.
What ear training is, and why pianists skip it
Reading tells you which key to press. Your ear tells you what you just heard. They are separate skills, and most self-taught pianists are much stronger at the first: they can play a piece from the page but cannot name the interval in a tune they are humming. This trainer works on the second one, in short sessions, with sound as the only source of truth.
Six exercise types
Intervals, chords, scales, single notes, rhythm and melody. Each one can be practiced two ways. Identify plays a phrase and asks you to name it. Play plays a phrase and asks you to reproduce it on the keyboard, which is harder and closer to what you do when you work out a song by ear.
Four levels that change the material, not just the speed
- Beginner: five intervals (major 2nd, major 3rd, perfect 4th, perfect 5th, octave), major and minor triads, major and natural minor scales. Three answer choices, 12 questions, up to three replays each, hints available.
- Intermediate: ten intervals including the tritone, six chord qualities, six scales including the pentatonics. Four choices, 15 questions, two replays.
- Advanced: every interval, fifteen chord types including sevenths and altered triads, fifteen scales including the church modes and the two blues scales. No hints, 20 questions.
- Expert: the full chord and scale catalog, five answer choices, 25 questions, notes drawn from C1 to C8, and no note names on the keys.
Controls
Press Space to replay the phrase and the number keys 1 to 9 to pick an answer. In Play mode, answer by clicking or tapping the keyboard on screen, or by playing a MIDI keyboard: Web MIDI is supported in Chrome and Edge on desktop and Android, but not in Safari on iPhone or iPad.
Getting past a plateau
Two habits do most of the work. First, sing or hum the phrase back before answering; if you cannot sing it, you have not really heard it. Second, keep one exercise type for a whole session instead of shuffling, because intervals and chord qualities are recognized by different cues and mixing them stops either from settling. When a specific interval keeps catching you, anchor it to a tune you know, then check the anchor here. If you want the same skill applied to a real piece, take it to Listen & Play, or let the Professor drill call-and-response with you in the Concert Hall.
Questions about the Ear Trainer
Do I need an account to use the Ear Trainer?
No. As a guest you get 30 questions per day, and the counter resets on the next calendar day. An account removes the daily cap and keeps your history, your accuracy per exercise type and your review queue across devices.
What is the difference between Identify mode and Play mode?
In Identify mode you hear a phrase and choose its name from a list of answers. In Play mode you hear it and reproduce it on the keyboard. Naming a minor third and finding one under your fingers are two different abilities, and Play mode is the one that transfers to actually playing by ear.
How does the trainer estimate my level?
From volume and accuracy together, not from a single good session. You are counted as Intermediate after 40 answered questions at 60 percent accuracy or better, Advanced after 100 questions at 75 percent, and Expert after 200 questions at 85 percent. The stats panel also breaks your accuracy down by exercise type, which is usually more useful than the label.
Can I use a MIDI keyboard?
Yes, for answering in Play mode. Web MIDI works in Chrome and Edge on desktop and on Android; Safari on iPhone and iPad does not support it, so tap the on-screen keys there instead.
How long is one session?
Twelve questions at Beginner, 15 at Intermediate, 20 at Advanced and 25 at Expert. That is deliberately short: ear training rewards frequency far more than duration, and ten focused minutes a day beats an hour once a week.
