A version of a 2011 article on teaching perception of pitch. Brief and intended as a source of ideas and further discussion. Feel free to make use of the ideas herein but cite the author as appropriate.

1. Teaching
Perception
of
Pitch
7th
March
2011
By
Kris
Bowtell
NB:
This
is
a
brief
article
aimed
at
beginning
classroom
music
teachers
and
was
intended
as
a
source
for
ideas
and
stimulus
for
further
thought.
It
is
by
no
means
intended
to
be
exhaustive.
You
are
very
welcome
to
share
it
amongst
your
colleagues,
but
please
credit
the
author.
Questions
and
comments
are
welcome.
Little
and
often
Developing
good
aural
skills
is
the
work
of
years,
not
weeks!
Have
a
plan
for
your
students’
pitch
skills:
set
specific
targets
for
the
year/term/etc.
Invest
time
in
every
session
without
fail,
but
keep
it
short
and
active.
Use
the
whole
body
including
the
voice
Combine
moving,
playing
and
singing
with
seeing,
hearing
and
writing
to
fully
engage
students.
Neurological
research
shows
that
when
attention
is
focused
and
learners
make
multiple
neural
“connections”
they
store
and
retrieve
stronger
memories.
See
www.dalcroze.org.uk
for
a
multisensory
approach
to
teaching.
Theory
follows
experience
Whether
you
are
introducing
minims
to
your
KS2
class
or
the
Italian
6th
to
your
A-­‐level
students,
students
must
have
a
repertoire
of
pieces
before
the
new
feature
can
be
meaningfully
learnt.
Two
or
three
examples
are
not
enough.
Six
or
ten
pieces
that
they
know
and
can
sing/play
are
a
solid
foundation.
Make
no
assumptions
We
often
think
of
pitch
perception
as
being
just
intervals,
sight-­‐singing
and
dictation,
but
there
are
fundamental
skills
underpinning
these.
For
example:
·
Can
your
students
hear
the
tonic?
Once
students
can
feel
that
melodies
have
a
“home”
or
“resting”
note,
try
the
following
(with
short,
simple
melodies):
A
given
location
in
the
room
represents
the
tonic.
Students
listen
to
the
melody,
then
illustrate
the
melody's
path
by
taking
a
walk
in
the
room.
Initially
they
should
aim
to
show
whether
they
finish
on
the
tonic
or
not:
later
they
should
show
how
far
away
from
the
tonic
they
finish.
If
space
is
limited,
stay
seated
and
use
hand/body
proximity
instead.

2.
·
Can
your
students
hear
melodic
contour
and
direction?
Don’t
assume
that
all
students
can
identify
that
one
note
is
higher
than
another.
Poorly
coordinated
and
dyspraxic
students
may
not
be
able
to
reliably
identify
musical
“up”
and
“down”.
Help
them
by
using
a
kinaesthetic
approach.
o
When
taking
dictation,
on
the
first
hearing
students
should
trace
the
shape
in
the
air
or
draw
it
on
a
large
piece
of
paper.
This
will
help
their
perception
of
melodic
direction
and
shape
and
you
will
better
understand
what
happens
in
their
heads
when
they
first
hear
a
melody.
o
Line
the
group
up
along
the
room.
As
you
play
or
sing
(quite
slowly
at
first)
they
step
forward
(rising
pitch)
or
backward
(falling
pitch)
all
together,
or
walk
on
the
spot
if
the
next
note
doesn’t
move.
Use
solfa
(movable
do)
and
numbers
·
From
the
earliest
opportunity,
and
certainly
by
GCSE
level,
students
should
identify
the
notes
they
hear
in
relation
to
the
tonic.
“Movable
do”
solfa
and
Kodály
techniques
will
establish
this
aural
framework:
see
www.britishkodalyacademy.org
·
If
you
feel
for
some
reason
that
solfa
is
inappropriate
for
your
class,
use
numbers
(i.e.
scale
degrees)
instead.
It
is
less
flexible
but
will
still
make
a
big
difference.
Try
this
exercise,
known
to
choir
directors
everywhere:
1 1 2 1 1 2 3 2 1 1 2 3 4 3 2 1 etc.
Learn
melodic
clichés
·
Sing,
play,
write
and
memorise
“melodic
clichés”:
short
melodic
figures
that
appear
frequently
in
tonal
music.
This
example
is
a
set
of
common
ways
for
melodies
to
return
to
the
tonic:
2 1 3 2 1 4 5 1 5 1 6 5 1 7 1
re do mi re do fa so do so do la so do ti, do
This
can
provide
fast
results
(for
example
at
GCSE
level)
when
new
students
lack
a
basic
sense
of
degrees
of
the
scale.
Tones
and
semitones
·
Accurately
hearing
the
difference
between
tones
and
semitones
is

3. fundamental
and
needs
to
be
touched
upon
regularly,
even
at
A
level
and
beyond.
·
Physically
walk
steps
and
half
steps:
it
is
a
clear
spatial
analogy
and
ties
directly
into
theory.
Or,
if
you
have
guitars
in
class,
students
can
combine
theory
and
their
ears
to
work
out
how
to
play
a
major
scale
or
a
familiar
tune
on
a
single
string.
·
The
harmonic
“feeling”
of
a
semitone
is
very
different
to
that
of
a
whole
tone.
Take
a
few
minutes
one
day
to
let
your
students
really
listen
to
the
difference.
Allow
them
to
say,
write
and
act
out
what
they
hear,
as
descriptively
as
possible.
Homework
is
important
Importance
of
instrumental/vocal
practice
between
lessons
is
obvious
to
most
parents,
but
how
to
get
students
to
work
on
the
other
musical
skills
at
home?
·
Make
it
short
and
simple,
otherwise
it
won’t
be
done.
·
Memorise
short
musical
excerpts.
Send
sheet
music
home
and
have
students
sing/play/write
from
memory
next
week.
If
music
reading
is
limited,
place
a
recording
online
instead.
Use
examples
relevant
to
your
scheme
of
work.
·
Crucially,
make
sure
to
assess
the
homework’s
completion
in
the
next
class.
This
needn’t
use
much
class
time:
students
can
sing/play
their
short
piece
in
small
groups,
or
if
literacy
is
a
focus
give
them
a
couple
of
minutes
to
write
it
down
from
memory.
A
simple
record
of
‘excellent’/’satisfactory’/’incomplete’
in
your
register
will
take
only
a
moment
and
provide
plenty
of
information
for
reports
and
parent
nights.
Questions
for
further
thought:
1.
Do
your
students
know
how
to
improve
their
own
skills
at
home?
Have
you
given
them
a
clear
sense
of
where
they
are
and
where
they
need
to
be
(particularly
if
examinations
are
approaching)?
2.
Are
your
aural
activities
differentiated
for
a
range
of
skills?
Are
there
challenges
for
stronger
students
and
achievable
tasks
for
others?
3.
Think
about
how
your
approach
makes
your
students
feel
about
themselves
and
their
aural
skills.
Above
all
else,
build
confidence!
K.
Bowtell