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Perfect Pitch
vs. Relative Pitch
"Why
do I need Relative Pitch when
I can have Perfect Pitch?"
 Many
people have an impression that Perfect Pitch
is "superior" to Relative Pitch. But that's
like comparing apples with oranges.
The
truth is, Perfect Pitch and Relative Pitch
are completely separate skills, each with its
own universe of powers and abilities. They are complementary
-- like the two hemispheres of your brain. They work
TOGETHER.
Let's
compare the two:
PERFECT
PITCH:
David Lucas Burge explains that Perfect Pitch is
"Color Hearing." Just like you can name visual colors
by eye, you can learn to name Pitch Colors by ear:
 Remember:
You do not need to associate visual colors to tones to learn Perfect Pitch. Instead, Perfect Pitch is your experience of SOUND colors. If this seems
abstract, don't worry . . . even a child
can learn them (more info on
Perfect Pitch).
Perfect
Pitch lets you name EXACT pitches -- all by
ear.
RELATIVE
PITCH:
Relative
Pitch tells you the KIND of CHORD you are hearing. Every chord is a group of tones that creates its own special sound: Major,
Minor, Augmented,
Dominant Seventh,
Sharp Five, Add
Nine, Suspended Fourth,
etc.
Relative Pitch lets
you know ANY KIND of chord -- instantly -- by ear:
Relative Pitch
also tells you how to harmonize a melody --
and how harmonies progress to create a musical
flow. This is why Relative Pitch helps you to compose and play by ear.
Relative
Pitch tells you the chords you hear and
also lets you UNDERSTAND the musical flow -- by ear.
Now . . . here's how Perfect Pitch
and Relative Pitch work TOGETHER:
Relative Pitch tells you, for example, that
you hear a Major Seventh
chord.
But
now the question is: WHICH Major
Seventh is it? Are you hearing E
Major Seventh? G
Major Seventh? Or maybe . . . F# Major
Seventh?
This
is where your Perfect Pitch comes into play.
Perfect Pitch tells you the EXACT TONES, so
you can pinpoint the EXACT chord you are hearing
-- in this case, "D"
Major Seventh:
"Yes, but doesn't Perfect
Pitch also tell me the KIND of chord I'm hearing?"
No.
Perfect Pitch tells you the EXACT TONES. It
is your sense of Relative Pitch that lets you
understand the CHORD that is created with these tones.
It's like this: LETTERS in the alphabet are used to make WORDS that you understand. These words then create SENTENCES that you can understand.
In the same way, PITCHES in music are used to make CHORDS that have particular qualities. These chords then flow to create musical PROGRESSIONS that make a musical statement.
Whereas Perfect Pitch tells you the PITCHES you hear, only Relative Pitch lets you understand the LANGUAGE of music.
"My friend has Perfect Pitch and says he uses it to name all kinds of chords."
If
someone tells you that he hears a Half
Diminished Seventh chord using his "Perfect
Pitch," just smile at him. He's not really
using Perfect Pitch for this. Instead, this
is his Relative Pitch speaking.
Why?
Because he is describing how the RELATIONSHIP of tones creates a particular chord -- this is part of his sense of RELATIVE Pitch. This is where Relative Pitch gets its name; "Relative" refers to the "relationships" of the tones.
"I see now. But in general, isn't Perfect Pitch better
to have than Relative Pitch?"
Perfect
Pitch cannot replace Relative Pitch. Only Relative
Pitch gives you the full picture of MUSIC IN MOTION.
"Why do you need Relative
Pitch to understand music in motion?"
Think
of it this way: When someone speaks to you, do you
hear a stream of LETTERS: L - i - k - e - T -
h - i - s?
Probably
not. Instead, your ear groups these letters into WORDS
and PHRASES that you can understand.
Music
is a quickly flowing stream of tones: D, G, A, F#,
G, E, F#, D, etc. Even if you know each pitch perfectly,
music is much more than individual pitches.
Relative Pitch groups the "LETTERS" of the musical alphabet into "words" and "phrases." In other words, it groups NOTES into chords, intervals, and progressions that you can easily understand and follow. This is why only Relative Pitch gives you SPEED RECOGNITION of tones in motion.
If you want to UNDERSTAND music and gain
a LIGHTNING FAST ear, Perfect Pitch is not enough. Another dimension of hearing is required: the dimension of Relative Pitch.
Remember:
- Only
Perfect Pitch gives you the rich COLOR EXPERIENCE
of music -- so you can name EXACT pitches and keys -- all by ear.
- Only
Relative Pitch tells you the chords,
intervals, progressions, and harmonies that you hear, along
with SPEED RECOGNITION
of music IN MOTION.
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 The
Perfect Pitch Ear Training SuperCourse
has helped me enormously. I barely recognize
myself -- my perception of music has changed
so much! I would now love to purchase the
David Lucas Burge Relative
Pitch Ear Training SuperCourse.
(S.C., piano, Dublin, Ireland)
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"Which course should I start with: Perfect
Pitch or Relative Pitch?"
It's
your choice.
Many
people start with the Perfect Pitch Ear Training
SuperCourse. Others want to first master their
music language skills -- they begin with the Relative
Pitch Ear Training SuperCourse.
Pro
Tip: You'll make your fastest progress when you study both courses at the same time. A simple Relative Pitch tune-up opens even the most closed, stubborn ear, which greatly SPEEDS your progress with Perfect
Pitch. Your ear becomes naturally open and free.
Musicians around the world agree: you get fastest
results when you do your Perfect Pitch ear
training for a few minutes each morning, followed
by your Relative Pitch training for a few minutes
each evening.
Listen
daily from both angles, and soon you will own the
prized possession: a virtuoso TOTAL EAR for music
. . .
Plus
you get a COMBO
discount when you order both
courses together -- and you can
even spread out your payments over 12 months
with our Easy Pay Plan
(info).
Best
of all, you receive FULL MONEY BACK GUARANTEES
on BOTH courses, so you can try out everything at
no risk . . . (more
info on COMBO discount package)
4X the power
The
more you can hear, the more your abilities multiply.
David-Lucas
estimates that your ear is actually FOUR TIMES as
powerful when you possess BOTH skills -- Relative
Pitch and Perfect Pitch TOGETHER -- compared
to either skill individually.
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It
is truly amazing how many doors have opened
since I began your ear training courses.
Both have been a lot of fun. (S.H., Wilmington,
DE)
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As
a dynamic duo, Relative Pitch and Perfect
Pitch operate TOGETHER like one high-powered zoom
lens. You get the TOTAL musical picture: up close,
in color, and sharply focused.
Now
you'll finally have the ear you've only dreamed of
. . . to create your own unique sound . . .
to write your own success story.
Email
this page to a friend
Are you ready to start?
Order
your Relative
Pitch Ear Training SuperCourse online NOW
(see below) and also receive FREE Chord Chart & Power Points session.
COMBO
Discount: Order BOTH
SuperCourses together -- Perfect Pitch and
Relative Pitch -- and receive additional Combo
Discount . . .
more
info.
 Relative Pitch Success Stories
Combo Discount
............................................
What is Perfect Pitch?
What is Relative Pitch?
How does Perfect Pitch compare to Relative Pitch? (this page)
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