Tips on figuring out songs by ear.

Niallseroreilly

Anyone want offer there procedure for figuring out songs.

octatonic

I did a video for another thread that went through how I break songs down.
You need to view it from a computer as Aerosmith's label put in a copyright claim and part of the deal to be able to let me continue to have the video up is it isn't playable from mobile devices like phone.

It is a bit long but it should give you an idea of how to approach it.

Niallseroreilly

love it thank you @octatonic

octatonic

Welcome.

EricTheWeary

I haven't watched that, I should.

I'm not the best at doing stuff by ear but what helps (me) is listening properly. If it's a song you are very familiar with and have it in your head then that's a big help but sometimes I think I know how a song goes but I'm wrong. So, focused listening helps me: often with a pen and paper writing down the structure, maybe the lyrics, becoming intimate with it and not just having it on in the car.  

I'm not helped by dense production or arrangement so I sometimes find live versions ( or BBC sessions or even other covers) where there's a clear part ( or parts) are a better starting place. 

Veganic

Listening on headphones makes it ten times easier for me.  Song and guitar signal mixed to similar volumes.  Also slowed down if possible.

GavRichList

I tend to find the bass notes, then build the chords off that. 

DLM

You could try watching Levi Clay videos where he talks about transcribing (which is what he does for a living):

stratman3142

GavRichList said:

I tend to find the bass notes, then build the chords off that. 

Same here for songs.

I use Transcribe! and mark out the sections such as Intro, Verse, Chorus etc. That way I know which sections repeat which limits the amount I need to learn.

Evo

Quite a big question there, once you get into the details. So stick with me on this one and I'll try and explain it quickly!

I recommend learning about chords and key signatures. With a little knowledge in this area, you soon realise that you are often only working from a pool of around 3 major and 3 minor chords for each song.

For example, if you can pick out an E minor chord from a song, there are only actually three possibilities for the key of the whole song (G, C and D). 

Once you have a likely key, you instantly know the most likely choices for the other chords. 

Certainly beats the the old trial and error method where you're sat there frantically trying to remember every chord you've ever learnt in case it's one of those!

Just to start you off, i'd suggest making sure you can recognise the difference between major and minor chords by ear. Once you can do that, google "harmonisation of the major scale" and start looking into that topic. That's where you'll see how chords and keys work together.


I know this might not be exactly what you were after but I completely and unreservedly recommend doing this, as it has made my transcribing life a lot simpler!