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ToneGym
Sep 29, 17:53 in Basic Music Theory
Congrats @Henry Do for completing the 'Music Theory Basics' program!
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Colin Aiken
Sep 30, 04:03
Good work!
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ToneGym
Sep 30, 03:24 in ToneGym Official
Congrats @Benjamin Buckley for winning the Silver Ears Award!
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Colin Aiken
Sep 30, 04:03
Congrats!
After months of failing over and over, I finally beat the 1st level of Inversionist!

For those like me that struggle with this exercise, here's what it took for me to finally beat it:
• Listen to the ToneGym playback multiple times.
• Find the base chord on the piano in the same general range as the ToneGym playback.
• Move back and forth between inversions on the piano.
• Key step: Now play it back on the piano as an arpeggio. Playing as a chord didn't cut it for me, but for some reason playing as an arpeggio allowed me finally hear where the inversion was.

Good luck, folks, and let me know if this helped any of yall, or if you have any other tips!
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… and then the minor chords appeared, and my progress slowed again 😅
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J K
Sep 28
I've been relying on my intuition for the most part. It's a lot harder for me to focus on the right answer than it is to just assign a feeling to each sound and take my best guess.

The root sounds settled and final, the 1st sound wonky or off somehow, the 2nd sounds like the root but with a touch more bite or air to it?

Maybe there's a better way, I just started but that's what's worked for me so far!
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Tori Kamal (author)
Sep 29, 19:40
@Kinsey Nietzsche way to stick with it though!
@J K I think just doing what works for each of our individual brains the best is the way to go!
ToneGym Hero: Pavol Brezina
Pianist, university lecturer, and self-confessed technical problem-solver with a soft spot for Hans Zimmer's Time, Pavol Brezina never set out to teach people how to listen. He was just someone for whom music had always been part of life, with a curiosity that grew from enjoying sound to wanting to know how it's shaped and how it carries ideas and emotion.

That led to years studying music, sound and acoustics, then teaching those subjects at university, and to a daily ToneGym routine he now brings into the classroom, before discovering that listening is a skill that can be systematically trained. @Pavol Brezina is this month's ToneGym Hero!

Read the full article here: https://www.tonegym.co/blog/item?id=pavol-brezina
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Beto Ojeda
Sep 29, 15:01
It's great to learn a little more about your background in music, Pavol! I share your admiration for H. Zimmer. Great interview—congratulations!
Congrats @Hernando Frias for winning the Silver Ears Award!
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Thank you thank you
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J K
Sep 22
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Colin Aiken
Sep 29
Bravo!
Progressions Champ Winner, Sep. 21st - Sep. 24th:

1st: @John Huang 74 pts
2nd: @Beto Ojeda 74 pts
3rd: @Nikolay Kutkovoy 56 pts

See complete standings:
https://www.tonegym.co/contest/view?id=IWOTD14DRDH
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Colin Aiken
Sep 29
Wowsers!
Congrats @Kewei Lyu for winning the Golden Ears Award!
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J K
Sep 25
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Colin Aiken
Sep 29
Fantastic!
Congrats @Yaroslav Vins for winning the Silver Ears Award!
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J K
Sep 28
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Colin Aiken
Sep 29
Very cool!
Congrats @arash mohammadi for completing the 'Complete Music' program!
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Colin Aiken
Sep 29
Fantastic work!
Chords Champ Winner, Sep. 24th - Sep. 28th:

1st: @John Huang 67 pts
2nd: @Beto Ojeda 56 pts
3rd: @Nikolay Kutkovoy 51 pts

See complete standings:
https://www.tonegym.co/contest/view?id=L3O65XO161B
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Colin Aiken
Sep 29
Awesome!
Qual é o percentual de habitantes do planeta que possuem a audição treinada?
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Cuantas Vacas
Sep 27
De qué planeta?
I am stuck at Departurer in distinguishing M21 from m21. Does anyone have a hint / technique for me, how to overcome this? I think, I have to find a different approach. Thanks a lot!
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Henry Do
Sep 27
I dont know much about theory, but in my experience, M21 has more tension feeling than m21
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Ken Wilkens
Sep 27
I use song references to hear intervals. For m7 I hear “Tonight” from West Side Story (There’s a place for us). I also have a reference song for the M7 (actually from the musical Damn Yankees) - also agree - the M7 has a lot more tension.
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Cuantas Vacas
Sep 27
To me, it feels much like m7-M7, maybe a bit less dissonant
Not enough time to practice? Let's talk about that.
We've all said it: I'd practice more if I had the time.

But here's a question from our latest article: if you could quit your job tomorrow and do music full time, would you actually put in an extra 40 hours a week?

Probably not. And that's okay. Music is a marathon, not a sprint. The musicians who improve fastest aren't the ones with the most free time; they're the ones who use the time they have with intention.

Read the full article here: https://www.tonegym.co/blog/item?id=time-management-for-musicians
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Great take! I would add clarify and define what is that that you want to improve on, for a specific amount of time, say:

- I'd like to improve my understanding of harmony on my instrument for the next 3 months

or

- I'd like to master blues-jazz changes for the next 2 weeks

It's much easier to progress and develop a practice routine when you are aiming for something specific, even if it's in the short or the long run. Define your goals.
I want to know my vocals type
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J K
Sep 22
There's also this thing if you're talking about something actionable though - https://www.tonegym.co/tool/item?id=vocal-range-test-tool&lp=vrt
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Get a vocal coach, or if that is beyond your budget, join a community college choir (usually pretty cheap), where assessing your voice type to put you in the right section will be part of the process.
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Alex Gray
Sep 25
type
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ToneGym
Sep 25 in ToneGym Cafe
A brilliant breakdown of the jaw-dropping chord Stevie Wonder hid inside one of his greatest songs, pure ear-opening music theory magic 🎹✨
The Sir Duke chord EXPLAINED
Chords  
16 min
David Bennett Music Theory