Thread: Dream Jazz

Originally Posted by StephenDedalus

I have ambitions of bumping into Miles Davis or Jimi Hendrix in my dreams and getting some general musical inspiration.

I did that once! I was talking to Jimi Hendrix about music until he suddenly drowned (he wasn't even in a lake...?). I was disappointed when I woke up and nothing he said in the dream actually worked, but it was still cool. The lyrics of Purple Haze were written in the sky and we were standing on the side of a brick building. I don't know much music theory at all, I can barely read music, so maybe you'll have a dream that will help and inspire you.

I don't know if I've always had it or accidentally learned it, but I can "hear" any note I want in my head. That's how I tune my guitar. I have trouble naming notes because I'm just learning them now.

Originally Posted by Woodstock

I don't know if I've always had it or accidentally learned it, but I can "hear" any note I want in my head. That's how I tune my guitar. I have trouble naming notes because I'm just learning them now.

Really? If you can sing any note accurately 100% of the time you probably have perfect pitch, though I've known lots of people who could tune their guitars this way because they memorized the sound of one or all strings. That's sort of a related skill.

Originally Posted by StephenDedalus

Really? If you can sing any note accurately 100% of the time you probably have perfect pitch, though I've known lots of people who could tune their guitars this way because they memorized the sound of one or all strings. That's sort of a related skill.

I can't always sing notes accurately, but that's because I'm a horrible singer. But I can imagine an F or B or something in my head and play it on my guitar and it's the same. I don't know if that's perfect pitch or a good musical memory.

Originally Posted by Woodstock

I can't always sing notes accurately, but that's because I'm a horrible singer. But I can imagine an F or B or something in my head and play it on my guitar and it's the same. I don't know if that's perfect pitch or a good musical memory.

It could be the beginning of relative pitch, because if your ear has a chance to orient itself to any note at all it can judge the other ones by association to that original one. If you have PP you should be able to sing any note reasonably accurately pretty much every time, maybe not with a beautiful sound but in pitch, and you should be able to do so with any of the 12 notes of the tempered musical scale, whether you know their names or not.

For example, as part of my ear training I sing an A or handful of other notes before I've touched my guitar or had a chance to compare it to something else. 99% of the time I get it right, and this is sort of getting into absolute pitch territory, but real establishment of the perception of tones should mean that they're as clear in your mind as imagining different colors.

Originally Posted by StephenDedalus

It could be the beginning of relative pitch, because if your ear has a chance to orient itself to any note at all it can judge the other ones by association to that original one. If you have PP you should be able to sing any note reasonably accurately pretty much every time, maybe not with a beautiful sound but in pitch, and you should be able to do so with any of the 12 notes of the tempered musical scale, whether you know their names or not.

For example, as part of my ear training I sing an A or handful of other notes before I've touched my guitar or had a chance to compare it to something else. 99% of the time I get it right, and this is sort of getting into absolute pitch territory, but real establishment of the perception of tones should mean that they're as clear in your mind as imagining different colors.

When I said I can't sing, I meant I can't even sing the right notes when I try. I have almost no control over my voice when I sing. I know when I'm singing a little too low, but I try to change that and then it's too high. There's a small part that's a little less than an octave that I can sing the right notes.

Originally Posted by Woodstock

When I said I can't sing, I meant I can't even sing the right notes when I try. I have almost no control over my voice when I sing. I know when I'm singing a little too low, but I try to change that and then it's too high. There's a small part that's a little less than an octave that I can sing the right notes.

I understand, that's not unusual. You may have a naturally talented ear, the extent of which does vary a lot individual by individual, but it is still unlikely that you would have perfect pitch, without being able to accurately pronounce the syllable "la" within your comfortable vocal range.