Whenever you're sitting or standing around waiting for something (or on the treadmill in the gym,
or out for a walk, or a thousand other similar situations) you need never be bored again!
There
are mental exercises that you can do to occupy yourself while training your
brain to remember general and specific intervals, scales, chords, and so
on. Do these entirely in your mind with your eyes open but
not looking at a keyboard or using any other visualization or memory aid.
Note letters in seconds ascending (7 iterations). Recite the
sequence of note letters A up to G inclusive, picturing the piano keys as you go.
Now repeat for B up to A inclusive. Continue in the same way and finish on G up to F inclusive for a total of 7 iterations.
Do variations of this exercise where the letters are recited in groups of 2
(for example, AB DC EF G) or 3 (for example, ABC DEF G). While doing the
groups-of-3 variant, pay attention to the first and third note in each
group; this is the beginning of thinking in intervals of a third. Also do variations
where you picture the note clock (shown below) as you recite, instead of the piano keys.
Note letters in seconds descending (7
iterations). Recite the note letters A down to B inclusive,
picturing the piano keys as you go. Now repeat for G down to A
inclusive. Continue in the same way and finish on B down to C inclusive
for a total of 7 iterations. Do the same variations for this exercise as
for exercise #1.
Note letters in seconds ascending and
descending (14 interleaved iterations). Recite two series of note
letters—A up to G inclusive and A down to B inclusive—by taking the
1st letter from the ascending series, the 1st letter from the
descending series, the 2nd letter from the ascending series, the 2nd
letter from the descending series, and so on. Then repeat with B at
the origin and so on ascending to G (or repeat with G at the origin
and so on descending to B). Do the exercise
sometimes picturing the piano keys, sometimes picturing the note
clock. Before you say each
note letter, mention the general interval from the origin note; this is
the beginning of thinking in intervals and of learning the degrees
of all the scales. Notice what happens between the intervals of a
fourth and of a fifth; the ascending and descending series cross. The result is: "Unison
above A: A, unison below A: A, second above A: B, second below A: G, third
above A: C, third below A: F, ... seventh above A: G, seventh below
A: B (and then repeat for the other six note letters)" If you're
making slow progress on this one then forget the unison and seventh
intervals and just focus on a third/fourth/fifth/sixth above and
below the origin note, sometimes going thirds up to sixths,
sometimes sixths down to thirds.
Note letters in seconds
ascending interleaved with descending (14 iterations). A combination
of exercises #1,
#2, and #3. Recite the sequence A up to G, then A down to B,
then B up to A, then G down to A, ... then G up to F, and finally B
down to C.
Each iteration begins at an increasing interval above or below A, so
make a mental point of that interval as you begin each iteration.
Don't forget to do the variations and observations of the exercise
as described in #1, #2, and #3.
Note letters in seconds ascending and descending A-G (14
interleaved iterations).
Perform exercise #3 (which has A at the origin) and then repeat it
with B at the origin and so on, ending on G. Same variations and
observations as #3. For further variation, go in descending order
taking as the origin the notes A down to B.
Note letters in seconds ascending interleaved with descending A-G (98 iterations).
Perform exercise #4 (which has A at the origin) and then repeat it with
B at the origin and so on, ending on G. Same variations and observations
as #4. For further variation, go in descending order taking as the
origin the notes A down to B.
Note letters in thirds ascending interleaved with
descending A-G (98 iterations).
Perform exercise #6, but navigate the note letters in thirds instead
of seconds (for example, "A C E G B D F, A F D B G E C, ...").
Scale formula
degrees. Recite the degrees of these scale formulas (ascending up to
1' and then descending back to 1 in each case): major, natural minor,
harmonic minor, and melodic minor.
Scale formula
triads. For each degree of the major and harmonic minor
scale formulas, observe the name of the triad formed from that
degree, the scale degrees that form it, and its modality. For
example: I, 1+3+5, major, ii, 2+4+6, minor, and so on.
Major and minor
thirds and triads. You can visualize either the piano keyboard for
this, or another instrument, or the tone clock. Starting at the note
C, move up in thirds (alternating major then minor) until you get
back to C. As you go, note the major and minor triads that you're
forming and the thirds that each neighbor shares. Also note the
cycle of fifths and fourths as you go. So, to illustrate: C, major
third up to E, minor third up to G, that's C major. G is a fifth
above C; C is a fourth above G. E, minor third up to G, major third
up to B, that's G minor. B is a fifth above E; E is a fourth above
B. This goes on until the G# major triad. Instead of going on to a B# minor
triad, do
an enharmonic shift to a C minor triad then continue to C. Then repeat from
C but this time going in reverse until the Ab minor triad then, instead of
going on to the Fb major triad, do an enharmonic shift to an E major
triad.
