Ear training

Training mode

Say we have the following ratios in a file ratios.txt

7/6
6/5
5/4
9/7
14/9
8/5
5/3
12/7

We can practice recognizing the corresponding intervals (1/1 played together with the given ratio) by running

$ jird --train ratios.txt

A randomly selected ratio from ratios.txt is then played, and a ‘?’ prompt printed. The trainee types in the ratio they think it is (e.g. 7/6). If the guess is incorrect, the correct ratio is printed. Otherwise a new randomly selected interval is played and the fun continues. Hit Ctrl-D to finish training and see your score.

A typical session looks like this:

JIRD - It's just intonation

? 14/9
? 5/4
? 8/5
? 5/4
? 5/3
? 7/6

6/5

? 14/9
Score: 6/7, 85.7%
Thank you for using Jird!

Example interval sets

The following training sets are chosen from nineteen just intervals (which happen to be close to nineteen-tone equal temperament). The names are from Harry Partch’s Genesis of a Music - note these are “arbitrarily named categories” grouped “according to psychological (or whimsical) reactions”.

Emotion

7/6
6/5
5/4
9/7
14/9
8/5
5/3
12/7

Approach

25/24
16/15
9/8
16/9
15/8
48/25

Power and Suspense

4/3
7/5
10/7
3/2
2

Nineteen tones

25/24
16/15
9/8
7/6
6/5
5/4
9/7
4/3
7/5
10/7
3/2
14/9
8/5
5/3
12/7
16/9
15/8
48/25
2

Controlling playback

All options for playback can be used in ear training mode too, for example -f to set the frequency of 1/1 and -p to set the instrument sound used.