SerialEar: Modern Relative Pitch
Status: In stock, Digital book is available for immediate access. Please Note: “SerialEar” contains 31 gigabytes of MP3s and PDFs. This is a very large course and will have 13 download links when purchased. You should download one at a time so that our and your system is not overwhelmed by the size of the complete download. If you have any issues please send us an email
“SerialEar” is also available on Bruce Arnold’s Patreon page as individual downloads at 9.99 a piece. Patreon has 13 individual downloads so the complete package is $130.00. If you prefer to purchase from muse-eek.com make sure you are on our mailing list to hear about sales coupons to save a bundle on this and other courses.
SerialEar is the Definitive Next Step in Your Contextual Ear Training Journey
I think the most important thing to realize about “SerialEar” is it’s a crucial step past Ear Training One Note Complete and Contextual Ear Training courses. I’ve developed this course over the last few years to deal with one of the most troublesome aspects of ear training which is building your key retention abilities.
Ear Training: The Order of Development
In the logical order that you work on my ear training method you first work on Ear Training One Note Complete and Contextual Ear Training courses. Then Key Note Recognition and then into 2 Note Ear Training. Many other courses are possible along with way if you have issues. See Ear Training A Guided Tour for a complete list of courses and order.
The “Key Retention” Weakness
Many students hit a road block when they get into Key Note Recognition and 2 Note Ear Training. The main reason for this is poor key retention, in otherwords, they modulated too much and are unable to hear more complicated groups of notes or melodies in the home key. Obviously the more you modulate the harder music is so “SerialEar” is about changing that so you don’t modulate as much. Remember modulation is fine but if you do it all the time that’s not good.
Hear ALL Melodic and Harmonic Three Note Combinations
The other thing that “SerialEar” does is prepare you the hear ANY 3 notes and improvise around those notes so it’s a direct application exercise. For instance, if you hear C,D,E you could of course improvise with those 3 notes but you could also do any of the following:
- Play any C scale that contains C,D,E
- Play C,D,E as a chord
- Move C,D,E diatonically up and down through a scale that has a C,D,E in it.
Since the C,D,E example will also be played in 18 different inversions you are going to find many new chord shapes that you have never played. But more importantly you are preparing yourself for a musical situation where you hear 3 notes and you are able to improvise around those notes to create real music. “SerialEar” goes through every melodic possibility for 3 notes in 18 inversions so you are preparing yourself to hear ANY 3 note combination in music!
PDF of Each Exercise
You can also use this course as a singing course because each MP3 also has a PDF containing the notes played so you could use this to sing the 3 note examples against a drone (MetroDrone® is a good way to do this) or create a key center via your instrument.
Working in All Keys
For ear training you just need to hear all of these 3 note combinations in one key because all keys are the same. BUT, if you want to be able to use this new ability with your instrument in real time you need to work through all 12 keys. This download gives you all 12 keys plus some bonus PDFs to help you understand every 3 note combination and where you might use it.
The Nuts and Bolts of the Method
So you need to hear more complex sounds in one key center but also to apply this to real music all in one exercise. Here’s how it works. You hear a low bass note then three pitches sung by a voice. The voice repeats those notes 3 times. You try to identify the notes in the key center created by the low bass note. You can do that part of the exercise anywhere you can listen to a MP3. But where this course really shines is in you play along on your instrument with these files, first identifying the notes and then improvising a long with the file which lasts 44 seconds.
Examples:
To Summorize
“SerialEar” is an advanced systematic method designed to help you achieve “drop of a hat” recognition of complex musical structures against a fixed tonal center. Heavily inspired by the legendary pedagogical legacy of Charlie Banacos, this course moves past the traditional “intervals in a vacuum” approach. Instead of counting distances between notes, it teaches your ear to immediately categorize the unique color and tension of all 12 fundamental trichords (Forte sets) across 18 different inversions and permutations against a constant, static drone. This maps the entire landscape of the twelve-tone clock relative to a single “Home” pitch.
This program is designed for three distinct types of study to maximize your musical growth. First, the Pure Ear Training approach asks you to focus entirely on the audio files, listening to the drone and visualizing the trichord’s exact place within the key center. Second, the Integrated Instrumental Approach challenges you to apply these combinations to your guitar, piano, or instrument in real-time, bridging the gap between raw hearing and live execution. By practicing this method systematically across all 12 keys, you build a permanent, high-definition internal map of the musical universe. Third, you can use the accompanying PDFs for each exercise to sing the example over a drone or give yourself a key center cadence before singing.
Keep in mind that working through all 12 keys is a serious long-term endeavor that will likely take a few years of consistent practice to fully accomplish. To ensure proper audio fidelity, the author strongly recommends using a high-quality stereo speaker system (such as IK iLoud speakers in the $200 to $300 range) rather than cheap headphones or mobile phone speakers. Charlie Banacos always emphasized that live acoustic sounds produce much better results than compressed feeds. For the best user experience on a desktop computer, Mr. Arnold recommends using the “Swinsian” MP3 player with its built-in EQ section rather than standard iTunes software.
Ear Training Mistakes: Resisting the Pull to Modulate
One of the most critical challenges when hearing multiple consecutive notes is your ear’s natural tendency to modulate. While courses like “Two Note Simultaneous Ear Training” encourage this shift, SerialEar strictly trains you to retain a static key signature. A common mistake is allowing a sonically strong sound, like a sharp 4 (#4), to pull your mind into a key a whole step higher (e.g., hearing the key of D while playing over a C drone). SerialEar teaches you to tame these dissonances by forcing you to pull yourself back into the home key center using scales, licks, or your voice.
A Complete Transformation of Your Compositional Voice and Technical Execution
Mastering these 12 fundamental trichords (3 note combinations) completely strips the mystery out of post-tonal harmony and complex jazz structures. Each trichord carries a highly specific “temperature” and mood that will naturally begin flowing into your own compositions and improvisations. For instrumentalists, this course forces your fingers completely out of standard, comfortable “box” shapes. Mapping dense structures like the chromatic 012 set across a guitar fret board or keyboard challenges your physical geometry, expanding your technical facility and performance confidence dramatically.
The Interactive Three-Phase Routine for Total Mastery
To see real results on the bandstand, you should perform two to three 10-minute sessions every single day using either a systematic or shuffle-play approach. A systematic routine is highly revealing because it quickly highlights your “blind spots”—the specific sets or inversions where your ear or fingers struggle. The course breaks your daily practice down into three distinct operational challenges designed to build transparency between what you hear and what you play:
Phase 1: The Melodic Challenge – Focuses heavily on phrasing and interval control. You will practice building rhythmic hooks, using trichords like 012 as a bridge between jazz licks, and writing lyrical, singable 4-bar melodies using highly dissonant sets like 016 (such as C, F#, G) to hide the dissonance inside a beautiful phrase.
Phase 2: The Harmonic Challenge – Focuses on texture and chord chemistry for piano and guitar players. You will explore tight vs. open voicings using the 025 trichord, practice keeping a “common tone” across moving pedal points, and discover how parent scales like Phrygian, Dorian, or Melodic Minor completely alter the color of an 013 set.
Phase 3: The Performance Challenge – Focuses on real-time reaction and “making an event” out of unexpected sounds. You will play the “Save It” game to resolve “ugly” or “wrong” notes within two bars, and use Charlie Banacos’ rhythmic displacement techniques to start your 3-note sets on different beats to turn eighth-note phrasing into fresh, modern ideas.
Advanced Companion Reference Materials Included
SerialEar includes massive, specialized reference tools that bridge the gap between ear training and raw music theory. The Trichord Chord Tone & Tension Reference explicitly answers which of the 8 core chord types allow all three pitch classes to function perfectly as chord tones or approved tensions with zero avoid notes and no clashes. Additionally, the Scale Trichord Reference features two comprehensive companion lists organized by both trichord and scale. It tells you exactly which of the 22 basic scales you can use to improvise over a specific Forte set at any given scale degree relative to the drone.
Symmetrical Trichord Pairings and Hexatonic Splits
For composers and advanced improvisers looking to dig deeper into post-tonal concepts, this package features the SerialEar Hexatonic Trichord Splits—complete with an accompanying .csv file for seamless data mapping in Excel. You will also receive the Symmetrical Trichord Pairing Reference, which charts all pairs belonging to the identical Forte type that share absolutely no overlapping pitch classes, such as pairing a 024 trichord on C-D-E with degrees 4-5-6 or 5-6-7. This section details how sets with higher internal symmetry, like the 036 diminished triad or the 048 augmented triad, yield fewer transpositions across the twelve-tone clock.
Singing Applications and Technology Integration
Physicalizing a pitch through your own voice is the fastest way to lock a sound into your internal map. SerialEar includes an explicit singing framework where you can use the companion tracking PDFs alongside the specialized MetroDrone®; application or MP3 tracks. You will learn to expand your melodic lines by singing the trichord, or discover fresh chordal textures by treating the three notes as a vertical voicing on piano or guitar while singing over them. For dense pitch combinations (like an 012 set) that stretch across three octaves and become physically impossible to sing, the course outlines structured methods for simple octave transposition.
Prerequisites and Getting Started
While you do not need 100% perfection in Ear Training One Note Complete or Contextual Ear Training courses to begin, a solid foundation in key retention is highly recommended so you don’t modulate at the drop of a hat. If your ear suffers from severe modulation issues, Mr. Arnold recommends working with the major mode files first, alongside the “Key Note Recognition” and “Key Retention Builder” courses. For advanced beginners who are weak on complex scales and modes, you can jump straight into the major mode audio files and lean on the major pentatonic, minor pentatonic, and blues scales, which seamlessly fit an incredibly massive number of these 3-note combinations.
This course package contains: Advanced reference manuals, comprehensive companion lists, and an extensive library of professional audio files featuring voice tracks singing 3 notes, 3 times over a low bass key center. See lists below for table of contents and list of products contained in this course.
Table of Contents:
- Introduction
- How this Course Differs from the 3 Note Melodic Ear Training
- An Important Distinction about Hearing Multiple Notes
- How to Use This Program
- Singing Application
- Creative Application
- The Routine
- Phase 1: The Melodic Challenge
- Phase 2: The Harmonic Challenge
- Phase 3: The Performance Challenge
- Conclusionn
- FAQs
List of Contents for the SerialEar Course:
- Introduction
- SerialEar 9 Page PDF
- SerialEar Chord Trichord Reference 10 Page PDF
- SerialEar Hexatonic Trichord Splits Excel Document
- SerialEar Hexatonic Trichord Splits 1612 Page PDF
- SerialEar Scale Trichord Reference 18 Page PDF
- SerialEar Symmetrical Pairs 11 Page PDF
- Tagging Tracks in Swinsian or Itunes 5 page PDF
- 1585 MP3s per key 20,605 in total for all keys
- 1585 PDFs per key 20,605 in total for all keys
ISBN: 978-1-59489-291-2
Status: In stock, Digital book is available for immediate access.
Frequently Asked Questions About SerialEar
I fine these additional PDFs to be very interesting but not exactly sure what to do with them. What do you recommend?
While the PDFs do give you an explanation of how to use them I know this can be confusing because the course has so much material to digest. That said, With these additional PDFs you are really getting multiple books in one course!
- Trichord Chord Tone & Tension Reference: Use this to get more ideas on what you could play over the various note combinations you hear in the MP3s.
- Hexachord Trichord Splits: This PDF give you every Trichord that you could add the MP3 example you are hearing. So basically it is showing you how you could start improvising with two trichords together often referred to as a “Two Triad Pair.”
- Scale & Trichord Reference Lists: This PDF is probably the most useful for a beginning through intermediate student because it answers the question. If I hear “X” trichord what scale could I use with that trichord.
- Symmetrical Trichord Pairing Reference: Both Charlie Banacos and Jerry Bergonzi recommended that when you use a trichord it is best at the beginning to use a symmetrical pair of trichords rather than two different types. For instance C,D,G and E,A,B are both 027 trichords. It is best at the beginning of using trichord pairs to use the same type. This list gives you the possible combinations you could use.
- Tagging Tracks in Swinsian or Itunes: This PDF gives you directions to set up Swinsian or Itunes to remember which tracks you have a problem with so you can come back to them later to work on more. Really a great feature of both of these programs.
I REALLY don’t understand why you have so many ear training courses. Do I need them all?
You certainly don’t need them all but every student is different and will need extra courses to solve some ear training issue that is specific to their training. This is one reason why downloading an app usually isn’t going to get you to the ear training level that most students want because it is only giving you the ear training exercise in one “context.” By context I mean one way of hearing. For instance, “One Note Complete Ear Training” give you a cadence then plays a note. Great exercise but if you switch it around as I do with “Key Note Recognition” now you hear a cadence and always a “C” note and are asked what key the cadence was in. That is using the same idea of recognizing sound within a key center but 99% of students feel like they are starting over with “Key Note Recognition.”
That is also why I have all the Direct Application Ear Training because that puts the exercise into a real musical environment. Again a new context! Understanding that “context” is a crucial part of your learning of anything and can save you a lot of heartache thinking there is something wrong with you when it’s actually just the way we learn. One more example, you play something perfectly at home then you go to your music lesson and in front of your teacher you totally can’t play the example. That’s “context” staring you in the face! The more you get use to playing in front of your teacher the more you will be able to play things that you practice correctly.
What audio setup do you recommend for listening to these training files?
The author highly recommends playing these files through a good stereo speaker system rather than a cheap mobile device speaker or headphones. Mr. Arnold uses a set of IK iLoud speakers in the $200 to $300 range and cautions against using any speakers under $100. Legendary pedagogue Charlie Banacos always emphasized that you will achieve much better ear training test results by practicing with real, live open-air sounds rather than isolated headphones. While companion PDFs are included so you can run these exercises live with another person, a good set of Bluetooth speakers is the most practical solution for solo practice.
Can I use iTunes to manage and play the course files?
You can but I find iTunes to be confusing, too many ads and not very user-friendly for daily ear training routines. That said, I do use it when on the road but when practicing at home, I use a desktop computer program called “Swinsian.” It is a straightforward, easy-to-understand MP3 player that includes a dedicated EQ section, allowing you to tweak the audio output specifically for your room speakers and save those custom settings for future sessions. Like Itunes Swinsian can be programmed to remember the MP3s that you had a problem with so you can make a separate list of tracks you need to work on again. I’ve included a PDF to show you how to program that with both itunes and swinsian. By doing a few minutes of setting this up you really don’t need a fancy app to do this ear training just use your phone.
Why do I struggle so much with note combinations that include a sharp 4 (#4)?
This is a very common hurdle for students. Hearing a #4 naturally tricks your ear into modulating up a whole step—for example, a #4 in the key of C will make you hear the key of D instead. This is exactly where the integrated instrumental approach shines. By playing up and down a C scale or striking a C chord along with the track, you can actively pull your mind back into the home key center and correct the modulation. In real music, a C bass note under a song in D functions as a b7 rather than a root, but the specific purpose of SerialEar is to build your key retention so you can hear these complex structures natively within a single home key.
I’ve noticed in some exercises you recommend a drone and in others you say the drone is a crutch. So not sure what to do?
Yes that can get confusing. In the long run you shouldn’t use a drone because it is indeed a crutch. That said, you will need a crutch for a certain amount of time to get to the point that your key retention is strong enough that you only need to hear the key center once and then you can do multiple exercises not needing the drone. The Key Retention Builder course is a good course to work with for weaning yourself off the drone. One of the side benefits of a drone is many students get perfect pitch by hearing the drone so often. So that is a cool thing.
How advanced do my “One Note Ear Training” skills need to be for this course?
You do not need 100% perfect accuracy with one-note ear training to start this course, but it certainly helps. Remember that “One Note Ear Training” refers to identifying all 12 notes in any octave by their unique contextual sound within a key center, rather than calculating their distance from the root. The biggest issue you will likely face in SerialEar is maintaining your key center. If you tend to modulate at the drop of a hat, you will struggle with these exercises. If you experience severe modulation problems, it is highly recommended that you focus strictly on the major mode files first, or spend time with the “Key Note Recognition” and “Key Retention Builder” courses to strengthen your key retention.
I am an advanced beginner with weak music theory and scale knowledge. Will I struggle?
The short answer is yes—you will be quite challenged if you just randomly play any track in the library. If you want to play along with your instrument, you should search through the MP3s and isolate only the Major mode files. This gives you a fighting chance to improvise cleanly over the three notes once you identify them. Furthermore, you can play along with an incredibly massive number of these note combinations using just three foundational scales: the major pentatonic, minor pentatonic, and the blues scale.
Does this course accurately simulate a real-world musical situation?
Yes, this program is about as close as you can get to a real-time musical environment. It perfectly simulates a live band setting: a bass player strikes a low note to establish the key center, and then a singer belts out 3 notes and looks at you to respond. Working through this program prepares you to react instantly with something appropriate and musical. Because musicians on the bandstand could be playing or singing in any key, you must eventually practice this program through all 12 keys.
Why does the course include both a standard “C key center” and a “C low key center”?
This accounts for a specific acoustic phenomenon where hearing an extremely low bass note causes some musicians to perceive it as slightly sharp, making them hear the key of C# when a low C was actually played. Because C is the lowest bass note in this audio series, the course includes an alternative C bass drone tracked an octave higher. This sharping issue rarely occurs with real live instruments, but it shows up frequently when listening to audio recordings. Knowing this phenomenon exists helps reassure students that their ears are not broken; it is simply a physical acoustic situation that requires a temporary octave adjustment.
What should I do if I guess the 3 notes incorrectly? Do I repeat the track or move on?
You can do either, but the best approach is to make a quick note of the file name so you can loop it later. The author recommends striking a low note on your instrument or firing up the MetroDrone® app, and then practicing singing those specific 3 notes over the key center. Doing this for just a minute or two, a few times a day, will completely lock those tricky sounds correctly in your mind within a few days.
What is the best preparation before tackling this course if my music theory is weak?
If you feel you need a stronger foundation before diving in, Mr. Arnold recommends working through the “Music Theory Workbooks” first. From there, you should master basic chord structures using the “Chord Workbook for Guitar Volume One and Two”—even if you do not play guitar, this will teach you exactly how chords are formed and woven into progressions. Finally, work through “Essential Scales” to learn the 22 basic scales and how to apply them. This roadmap will give you a rock-solid foundation and a massive toolkit of ideas to use over any 3-note sequence.
Am I really going through every single 3-note melody combination in this program?
Yes, you are. When you work through a single key of this program, you are cycling through every possible 3-note melody across 18 distinct inversions and transformations. This covers every common way that any three notes could ever be played in modern music. If you play a chordal instrument like piano or guitar and practice voicing the 3 notes you hear, you are building an incredibly deep internal database of 3-note harmony that you can draw from instantly during live performance.
Should I download all 12 keys onto my phone or mobile device at once?
Unless you have a high-end phone with over a terabyte of storage, you should avoid downloading everything at once. The author recommends downloading just one single key at a time. Once you have listened through that entire key package, delete it from your device and move on to the next. For the best developmental results, move through the keys following the cycle of fifths: C, F, Bb, Eb, Ab, Db, Gb, B, E, A, D, and finally G.
I feel like I am suddenly developing perfect pitch on the note “C.” Is this normal?
Yes, this is a very common side effect. By the time you reach the halfway point of these exercises, you will likely find that you can recall and hear a “C” in your mind at will. However, keep in mind that there are many different types of perfect pitch. Developing the mental ability to recall a pitch does not always translate immediately to identifying that same note when played by a foreign instrument on the bandstand. If you want to specifically build out your pitch recognition further, you can move on to Mr. Arnold’s dedicated “Perfect Pitch” courses, where you work with one instrument at a time to gain absolute recognition.
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