Call-and-response Exercises 1.2
A game to develop your ear
Letโs play a game of call-and-response. This will help you to:
๐Develop your ear
๐ธPlay with others
๐กPractice and play creatively
How this works
- Listen to what I play
- Play it back
- Repeat the exercise until you can easily play back what you hear
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Let’s play
Exercise 1: D1
Drone: E
Exercise 2: D0 and D1
Exercise 3: D2
Exercise 4: D1, D2
Exercise 5: D0, D2
Exercise 6: D0, D1, D2
Exercise 7: D3
Exercise 8: D0, D3
Exercise 9: D3, A0
Exercise 10: D1, D2, D3
Exercise 11: D0,1,2,3
Exercise 12: D0,1,2,3, A0
Practice Variations
- Plucking instead of bowing
- Singing instead of fiddling
- Audiationย (“hearing it in your head”)ย instead of fiddling
- Record your own call-and-response exercises
More exercises like this can be found here:ย Call-and-response Central
Continue on to Fais Do Do – Beginner >>
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Hello, I got a couple of tuners on my iPhone and I put them at 440Hz. I think I’m going sharp. Are your recordings on 440? More than happy to adjust what I have since I would like my open strings to match. I mean, what I’m playing is close enough. I’m trying to fast review your earlier lessons because who knows what I don’t know–even though I can stumble through many tunes–maybe I’m a rusty intermediate or something like that. All the best,
Rosalie Werback
(“werbose”)
P.S. I’m renting a violin but going to purchase a modest decent one from my local violin shop, and I’ll be signing up for your full course as soon as I find my credit card–I wanted to make sure that I’ll actually go and buy that instrument and get on with this. The call and response modules are meditative. I’m not even stressed that I’m pretty bad at it because the repetition is peaceful. ro.
Hello Rosalie ๐
Great sharings, thanks for this. Yes, I can confirm Jason’s recordings are using the 440Hz frequency.
Great noticing with how you’re experiencing it. Happy playing and do reach out anytime!
The Files of the Exercises, Eleven and twelve are swapped
Thank you kindly for mentioning this ๐
Enjoy ๐ต
Oh, I’m thrilled. I’ve been practising for more than half a year now, I do the call and response exercise from time to time. Today I felt like I could really hear the notes.
Great breakthrough, Gabi! Thanks for sharing ๐
This is my favorite exercise thus far – grueling but so satisfying. So simple, training the ear – I will return to this often.
Any advice/tricks for remembering the longer strings? I’m pretty good up to about 12+ notes but struggle after that. Thanks!
Hi Claudia, great topic you raise.
Here are some Practise Variation tips included in another call and response page that may be useful:
Respond with plucking instead of bowing
Respond with singing instead of fiddling
Respond with Audiation (โhearing it in your headโ) instead of fiddling
On your own, alternate between singing and fiddling small tune phrases
On your own, alternate between playing something in the low and high octave
Record your own call-and-response exercises
Some thoughts I have:
as the caller is creating sounds (as they make each individual sound and immediately after each note – during the calling process), sound them with my voice, in my head, visualize the notes in my head, strum the notes with the caller in guitar position, etc – this may be considered cheating to some, though I often find myself utilizing various techniques such as these as I’m experiencing the caller make the strings
and also simply going back and repeating the same string of notes it until I get it. ๐
It’d be interesting to hear any specific methods you have for remembering longer strings of Call and Response.
Happy playing ๐ถ
I play piano so at first, when I saw the call and response exercises I thought they were too simple but in reality, violin is a different beast and not as intuitive as a piano (you go left and you get lower in pitch, etc). With strings, you need to learn that as you press more fingers on one string, you get higher. That concept seems simple but it is not when you have never played a string instrument so I am no longer thinking call and response exercises are simple. They are just perfect to train you with all those little things that end up adding to tons of good stuff.
I’m the exact same! I’ve spent several months on the first couple of modules, and am doing my best to work through the material slowly so I know I’ve got it down before moving on (which is the complete opposite of how my brain likes to work, haha). Some days I feel like I’m not making any progress, and other days I feel like it’s almost too easy, but when I take a step back and think about how I sounded the month before, I realize I am actually getting better. I would definitely recommend recording yourself every once in a while so you have an actual record of how you’re progressing ๐
I’m learning very slowly, but I don’t seem to be getting any worse. Have “looped” “call& response” exercises many times. Am finding the whole learning process enjoyable. A great program that I would recommend.
Iโm the exact same! Iโve spent several months on the first couple of modules, and am doing my best to work through the material slowly so I know Iโve got it down before moving on (which is the complete opposite of how my brain likes to work, haha). Some days I feel like Iโm not making any progress, and other days I feel like itโs almost too easy, but when I take a step back and think about how I sounded the month before, I realize I am actually getting better. I would definitely recommend recording yourself every once in a while so you have an actual record of how youโre progressing ๐
I wish I had found your site a long time ago! I would be so much farther along as a fiddle player. Thank you!!!
Just finished Call and Response 1.2- Love this ear training! I click the little down arrow so I get the screen where I can move the slider so I can repeat difficult patterns over and over until I get them. Sometimes helps to take a break and come back.
That was fun!
Absolutely love these exercises! Is there a way to save lessons so I can come back to them? Like a bookmark? I feel these exercises are great for learning how to improvise by listening before playing.
Hi Jason, If I can already read music notation, should I bother with tabs?
Hey Bill, you probably don’t need to go deep into tabs. Having a rough understanding will be helpful at times though.
When you do D, E, F#, G, A, F# Do you leave D1,D2 and D3 pressed down when you play the A or you lift all fingers? I am asking because I would much rather leave the fingers pressing on the D string notes but if I do that, my fingers do touch the A string and it sounds ugly. So it is safer to lift them but it is also risky as you may not bring them down in the same place.
Good question. It’s situational.
It’s good to be able to hold down 1st, 2nd and 3rd finger on the D string while playing open A (A0). But when actually playing a tune, it may make sense to lift the fingers in certain situations.
When in doubt, try it both ways. See if you can do it either way. Even if one way wins out, you become a more flexible fiddler by trying.
Love these scales exercises! Makes the process so enjoyable!
Thank-you
The call and response really helps me get too know my fiddle!
Totally, Chuvi! ๐ Same here. And I love when Jason says “Good job” or sayings something funny! There are hidden gems in some of the Call and Response Tracks. lol! ๐
Hi, Ive just subscribed and I am very excited ๐
Xxx
Tania from Oz ( Australia )