Junior High Band
Teaching Tips

Ear Training

Ear training is part of most music education programs. A popular way to remember the sound of each interval is to associate it with a familiar song that begins with that sound. The following list may be helpful – when I was a student, this was all we had. Now there are apps, such as Janis Kirsteins’ “Interval Recognition” that are very helpful.

Download a Microsoft Word version HERE.

Opening Interval Songs
Minor 2nd up Jaws, Pink Panther
Major 2nd up Do Re Mi, London Bridges
Minor 3rd up Greensleeves
Major 3rd up Marines Hymn
Perfect 4th up Here Comes the Bride, You Are My Sunshine, Auld Lang Syne
Augmented 4th up Maria (from West Side Story), The Simpsons
Perfect 5th up Star Wars, Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star (C-C-G-G)
Minor 6th up Love Story (up and down)
Major 6th up My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean, Jingle Bells
Minor 7th up Somewhere There’s a Place for Us (from West Side Story)
Major 7th up Bali High (C-C-B)
Octave up Somewhere Over the Rainbow, Annie Laurie
Minor 2nd down Fur Elise
Major 2nd down Hot Cross Buns, The First Noel, Dixie
Minor 3rd down This Old Man, Frosty the Snowman, The Star Spangled Banner
Major 3rd down Goodnight Ladies
Perfect 4th down Old McDonald (C-C-C-G)
Augmented 4th down
Perfect 5th down Feelings, Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho, Habanera
Minor 6th down The Entertainer
Major 6th down Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen
Minor 7th down An American in Paris
Major 7th down
Octave down Danish Royal Anthem

Video Disclaimer

The attached videos are not perfect examples of how each tune should be played. They are recordings of junior high students, some of whom have had their instruments for only a few months. Also, they are not professional recordings. They were taken by band parents using home equipment and naturally focusing on their own children.

I include them for two reasons: (1) To give you an idea of what the arrangements are like, and (2) To illustrate the kind of performance you can expect from your junior high students.