One of the ways that you learn about musical distance is through training your ear which is what the Interval Game enable. You can change the interval by using your mouse over the controls or, more accurate, by using your computer keyboard. This sight and sound experience give you the chance to link structure to sound.
To begin with, choose a starting interval using the bridge handle. This is the root note against which you’ll drag the top pitch. Each time you slide it, you’re changing the number of semitones above that starting pitch. Each step on the scale move you by one semitone. Alternatively, you could press the arrow keys to move the interval up or down in single-semitone steps.
How to Use the Interval Game
The screen will then reflect the chosen interval including its ratio of frequencies, as well as names of the two notes themselves. On the right-hand side of the widget is a dropdown menu that enable you to select your root note. From B4; C4, D4, E4; F4 (G4, A4). This allows you to experiment with how the intervals works against a different root. By default, it’s set to C4 so anyone who isn’t familiar with keys has a clear starting point. Feel free to adjust it as often as you like to hear how intervals sound in different contexts.
Below the root note selector there’s a little slider to adjust the volume. This control how loud the synthesised tone will be, so set it to suit your listening environment comfortabley. It’s a simple oscillator sound but very distinct and clear on the instrument.
Press the buttons for the three different playback of the interval. Pressing the climb button means that you will hear the lower note followed by the higher note, allowing you to hear the interval as it rises. On the other hand, pressing the stack button allow you to listen to both notes together hearing the consonance or dissonance (harmonic colour) of the interval. Finally, pressing the descend button mean you will hear the interval downwards starting with the upper note and then the lower one.
Try the mystery games. These create a random interval for you to climb (click “cast a climbing mystery”), or one that sounds all at once (click “hide a harmonic stack”). Four options is displayed; just hit the buttons or number keys 1-4 on your computer’s keyboard to pick which one you think it is. You get points if right, and the widget will play again if not. Your run streak and score continues until you get one wrong. Then they reset and you hear the mystery again for another shot.
Explore the symmetries of intervals with the inversion mirror button. It will flip the interval around the octave, so that major intervals inverts into minor intervals and perfect intervals invert into other perfect ones. The only exception is the tritone which inverts back onto itself, and here’s where the widget respells this as a diminished fifth if necessary. In doing so, you can start to see the mathematics behind intervals.
Click return the bridge to unison to clear the display. The bridge returns to the starting position clearing any mystery games in progress and resetting the interval to zero semitones (unison). Return the bridge if you want to start over or just check where your sound begins.
This is how to play panel for easy reference. If you’ve forgotten which keys do what then open up this section for a reminder of all the controls and key mappings. Open and close it as needed.
Turn off distractions with fullscreen mode. If you’re working on a smaller window or just need to focus all of your attention on the exercise, use fullscreen mode. It will remove distraction and make the controls and the interval bridge bigger on your screen. To go into fullscreen mode, press the fullscreen button. Exit out of it by pressing the fullscreen button.
Make a habit of practicing recognizing intervals. Experiment with using both harmonic and climbing listening modes. See how quickly you can identify the intervals in each mode. Test yourself on interval relationships with the inversion button.
This would of been created to be used as short targeted practice sessions. To get an immediate experience of what these intervals sound like and how they feel, start playing now. Try out other directions and different root notes. See if you can work out the mystery games too. Connecting what you hear to the visual distance is a good way to improve your ear.
Have fun learning.