Ear Training and Sight Singing: A Developmental Aural Skills Text

Designed to provide students with multiple strategies for ear training and sight singing, Ear Training and Sight Singing is a comprehensive series of exercises and techniques in all areas of the practical music discipline. It encompasses aural identification and written transcriptions as well as vocal performance of prepared and sight material. Suitable for use in ear training and sight singing courses for a 4-semester university or college programme anywhere in North America, this introduction provides a clear, logical presentation of the material, beginning with basic elements and progressing carefully through a graduated series of exercises and assignments that guides and monitors student progress. Loaded with practice repertoire, exercises, and assignments, and supported by an audio CD and a wealth of online supplements, Ear Training and Sight Singing provides the ideal one-volume introduction to aural skills that is excellent for student review and study.

Glen Ethier has taught music theory and aural skills at UBC, the British Columbia Conservatory of Music, University of Alberta, Queen's University, and McGill University. Since 2002 he has been Professor of Music at Vanier College in Montreal.

Author's Preface and Acknowledgements
Publisher's Preface
Part I
1.
Scales
The major scale
The solfege system
Movable do
Curwen hand signs
Intervals
Seconds and thirds
Singing seconds and thirds: referential melodies
Melody
Transcribing scalar melodies
Singing simple scalar melodies using solfege
Triads
Major
Singing major triads from the root
Rhythm
Simple time signatures: notation and transcription
Reading and performing simple time rhythms
Conducting patterns
Vocalizing strategies
Harmony
Tonic versus dominant: getting the bass line
Repertoire
Scale degree melodies
Solfege melodies and duets
Rhythm
2.
Scales
The minor scales-natural and harmonic form
Singing the natural minor scale
Singing the harmonic minor scale
Intervals
Perfect fourths, perfect fifths, and octaves
Melody
Tonic arpeggio
Singing melodies with tonic arpeggios
Triads
The minor triad
Singing minor triads from the root
Rhythm
Simple time: rests
Simple time: tied notes
Harmony
I, IV, V, and V7 in root position
Subdominant harmony (IV and iv)
Repertoire
Scale degree melodies
Solfege melodies and duets
Rhythm
3.
Scales
The melodic minor scale
Singing the melodic minor scale
Intervals
Major and minor sixths
Melody
The dominant triad and dominant-seventh chord
Singing melodies with dominant triads and dominant-seventh arpeggios
Triads
More major and minor practice exercises
Rhythm
Compound time signatures: notation, transcription, and reading
Harmony
I, IV, V (root position and first inversion), and V7 (root position)
Repertoire
Scale degree melodies
Solfege melodies and duets
Rhythm
4.
Intervals
Major and minor sevenths
Singing sevenths: octave displacement, arpeggios, or referential melodies?
Melody
The subdominant triad (IV and iv)
Singing melodies with subdominant arpeggios
Triads
Isolating outer voices in major and minor triads
Doublings in major and minor triads
Rhythm
Compound time signatures: tied notes and rests
Reading compound meter rhythms with tied notes and rests
Harmony
Linear progression: the viio6 harmony
The minor dominant in minor keys
Focus: the bass voice
Repertoire
Scale degree melodies
Solfege melodies and duets
Rhythm
5.
Scales
The jazz melodic minor scale
Intervals
The tritone
Singing tritones: referential melodies
Melody
Melodies with tritone leaps and arpeggio supertonic
Singing melodies with tritone leaps and arpeggio supertonic
Triads
Outer voices in major and minor triads: alternative doublings
Rhythm
The anacrusis (upbeat)
Compound and simple time signatures: other beat and division values
More challenging exercises
Harmony
Supertonic harmony: ii, ii6, and iio6
Submediant (vi/VI) and mediant (iii/III) harmonies
The minor supertonic in minor keys
Repertoire
Scale degree melodies
Solfege melodies and duets
Rhythm
Speed drills
6.
Scales
The church modes
Intervals
Review exercises
Melody
Review dictation
Triads
Hearing and singing the diminished triad
Rhythm
Simple and compound time signatures review
Harmony
Special harmonies in minor keys: subtonic; diminished submediant
Hearing simple non-harmonic tones: PT and NT
Repertoire
Solfege melodies and duets
Rhythm
Part II
7.
Scales
Continuation of Lydian mode exercises
Intervals
Simple melodic intervals in series
Melody
Melodies with leading-tone triad (viio) arpeggios
Triads
Hearing and singing the augmented triad
Rhythm
Simple time signatures: beat division into four
Harmony
The passing six-four (P6/4) harmony
Repertoire
Scale degree melodies
Solfege melodies and duets
Rhythm
Speed drills: scales and triads
8.
Scales
Exercises-the Mixolydian mode
Intervals
Simple harmonic intervals in series
Melody
Practice melodies for transcription and singing
Triads
Singing major and minor triads in root position given the third or fifth
Identifying outer voices in diminished triads
Rhythm
Simple meter: more challenging exercises with beat division into four
Compound meter: more ties and rests
Harmony
The neighbouring six-four (N6/4) harmony
The circle of fifths
Repertoire
Scale degree melodies
Solfege melodies and duets
Rhythm
Speed drills: scales and triads
9.
Scales
Continued work with the Mixolydian mode
Intervals
Longer series of melodic simple intervals
Melody
More melodies for transcription and singing; emphasis on supertonic and leading-tone arpeggios
More singing of Mixolydian mode melodies and duets
Introduction to two-part melodic dictation
Triads
Singing major and minor triads in inversion
Continued identification and singing of diminished and augmented triads
Rhythm
Simple meter: more challenging exercises with beat division into four
Compound meter: more ties and rests
Introduction to two-part rhythm reading
Harmony
The cadential six-four (C6/4) harmony
Longer harmonic progressions
Repertoire
Scale degree melodies-all arpeggios
Solfege melodies and duets
Rhythm (one-part and two-part reading)
Speed drills: all simple intervals (melodic and harmonic)
10.
Scales
Exercises: the Dorian mode
Intervals
Longer series of melodic and harmonic simple intervals
Melody
Dictation and singing in all modes
Continued two-part melodic dictation
Triads
Singing the diminished triad in first inversion
Rhythm
Simple and compound meters: more challenging exercises for transcription and reading
Two-part rhythm reading: more independence exercises and sight reading
Harmony
The arpeggio six-four (A6/4) harmony
All 6/4 harmonies review
Repertoire
Scale degree melodies-challenging examples
Solfege melodies and duets
Rhythm reading (one-part and two-part)
Speed drills: scales, triads, intervals
11.
Melody
8-bar melodies for transcription
Rhythm
Compound meter: beat division into six (second-level division)
Harmony
Outer-voice transcriptions in musical notation
Inverted V7 harmony: the V6/5 chord
Clefs
Alto and tenor clefs
Part III
12.
Scales
Exercises: The Phrygian mode
Intervals
Compound intervals: ninths and tenths
Singing ninths and tenths
Melody
8-bar melodies for transcription
Sight singing
Chords
Chords out of context: the dominant-seventh chord (Mm7)
Rhythm
Compound and simple time signatures: more exercises
Two-part rhythmic transcription
Harmony
Inverted V7 harmony: the V4/2 chord
Non-harmonic tones part I: unaccented NHTs
13.
Scales
The Locrian mode
Intervals
The Compound perfect intervals: P11, P12, and P15
Singing compound fourths, fifths, and octaves
Melody
8-bar melodies for transcription: sentence structure
Sight singing
Chords
Chords out of context: the minor-seventh chord (mm7) and the major-seventh chord (MM7)
Rhythm
Borrowed division: triplets in simple time
Two-part rhythmic transcription
Harmony
Inverted V7 harmony: the V4/3 chord
Non-harmonic tones part II: accented NHTs
14.
Scales
Exercises for all scales and modes
Intervals
Compound intervals: thirteenths and fourteenths; the compound tritone
Melody
8-bar melodies for transcription: period structure
Sight singing
Chords
Chords out of context: continued practice of mm7 and the MM7 chords
Rhythm
Syncopation from sixteenth-notes
Simple time signatures: Two-part rhythmic dictation using triplets
Harmony
Other seventh-chords: I7, IV7, and II7 (root position only)
Sequence: the circle of fifths
15.
Scales
The pentatonic scale
Intervals
Review exercises for compound intervals
Melody
Pentatonic melodies for transcription
Chords
Hearing the upper voice in Mm7, MM7, and mm7
Rhythm
Borrowed division: duplets in compound time signatures
Compound meter: other dotted-rhythm cells
Two-part rhythmic transcription
Harmony
Inverted predominant seventh: ii6/5 and iiO6/5
16.
Scales
The whole-tone scale
Intervals
Compound intervals greater than two octaves: multiple compound intervals I
Simple intervals in series
Melody
Melodies with chromaticism
Chords
Chords out of context: the half-diminished-seventh chord (dm7 or O7)
Mm7 chords: identifying upper voice and inversion
Rhythm
Irregular time signatures: 5/4 and 7/8
Two-part rhythmic transcription
Harmony
All diatonic harmonies review
Modal mixture
17.
Scales
The Octatonic scale
Intervals
Multiple compound intervals II: further exercises
Melody
Continued chromaticism in melodies
Chords
All triads: adding upper voices
Chords out of context: the fully-diminished-seventh chord (dd7 or o7)
Rhythm
Irregular meter: 8/8
More tuplets: other borrowed divisions
Harmony
Hearing viiO7 and viio7
Part IV
18.
Scales
The blues scale
Intervals
Review and practice of all intervals
Atonal series of intervals
Singing atonal interval series
Melody
Modulating melodies
Simple chromaticism in two-part melodies
Chords
Mm7 chords: adding upper voices
Rhythm
Changing meters
Harmony
Chromatic harmony: the Neapolitan sixth chord (bII6)
19.
Scales
Non-traditional scales
Intervals
Compound intervals in harmonic series
More atonal series of intervals: exercises
Melody
More modulating melodies
Modulating melodies with chromaticism
More chromaticism in two-part melodies
Chords
Adding upper voices to other seventh-chords
Rhythm
Advanced rhythm reading: further levels of beat division and samples from the literature
The subtriplet and the supertriplet
Harmony
More chromatic harmony: the augmented sixth chords
20.
Scales
Olivier Messiaen's modes of limited transposition
Intervals
Compound intervals in harmonic series
More atonal series of intervals
Melody
Melodies that modulate to other key areas
More chromaticism in modulating melodies
Chords
Hearing dominant-ninth chords out of context
The mM7 chord
Rhythm
Advanced rhythm transcription and reading
Harmony
V9 in harmonic progressions
Applied dominants: [V7] and [V6/5]
Appendix I: Curwen hand signs
Appendix II: Interval chart
Appendix III: Rhythmic shorthand
Appendix IV: Chromatic variants of the movable-do Solfege system
Glossary of musical terms
Index