Re: Ear training

[Richard Parncutt <parncutt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>I am looking for data relevant to research on how people learn to
discriminate musical pitch-intervals. In particular, I am seeking
confusion matrices for the intervals.

Here are two possible sources of confusion matrices.

(1) Melodic intervals

Terhardt, E., Stoll., G., Schermbach, R., & Parncutt, R. (1986).
Tonhoehenmehrdeutigkeit, Tonverwandschaft und Identifikation von
Sukzessivintervallen. (Pitch ambiguity, harmonic relationship and
identification of melodic intervals.) Acustica, 61, 57-66.

Task: Hear interval and play it back on a keyboard. Finding:
Consonant intervals are generally easier to recognize than dissonant
ones.

(2) Harmonic intervals

Plomp, R., Wagenaar, W.A., & Mimpen, A.M. (1973). Musical interval
recognition with simultaneous tones. Acustica, 29, 101-109.

Finding: Intervals tend to be confused with other intervals of almost
the same size rather than intervals that are harmonically similar. So
for example P5's are confused with M6's more often than with octaves
(P8s).

Richard Parncutt
parncutt@music.mcgill.ca