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Repeat the chord (broken)
A random major or minor triad. Recognize it and repeat it.
Ear training: the target notes stay hidden until you have sung them.
Repeat the chord (broken) plays a random triad one note at a time, root, third, fifth, and asks you to sing it back. The catch is the third: a major third, four semitones, makes a major triad; a minor third, three semitones, makes a minor triad. You have to hear which one you got before you sing, since the target is hidden until you've finished. It trains chord recognition, the foundation of harmony singing. 'Lah' keeps the three notes distinct.
How to do it
- Listen to the three piano notes and decide immediately: bright and open means major, darker means minor.
- Sing the root on 'lah', then the third you heard, then the fifth.
- After singing, the roll shows the targets; check the third first, then the fifth.
- Six repetitions, each a new chord; track how often you confused major and minor.
Coach's tip: The third decides: bright = major, dark = minor.
What to watch out for
The classic error is a hedged third: you sing somewhere between three and four semitones and the roll shows yellow. Commit to one or the other; a confident wrong guess teaches more than a mushy hedge. The fifth is the same in both chords, so if it's off, your root drifted. Don't slide into notes. If you keep hearing the chord wrong, sing Major triad 1-3-5-3-1 and Minor triad back to back to reload the two sounds. No strain involved.
Who it's for
Suitable for beginners upward, especially anyone who sings harmonies or wants to feel what 'major' and 'minor' mean in the voice. Use it in the first half of a session, after Repeat the interval. If it's hard, practice Major triad 1-3-5-3-1 and Minor triad first. It appears in the Ear program.
Part of programs: Ear
Opens the app in your browser. Free, no account. Put on headphones first.