Absolute pitch training for adults: How effective is the “Melody Triggers” method?

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• Sam Leak, University of Cambridge
• Tuesday 23 April 2024, 17:00-18:00
• CMS computer room, Faculty of Music (11 West Road, Cambridge, CB3 9DP).

If you have a question about this talk, please contact Peter Harrison.

Abstract

Despite over a century of research into absolute pitch (AP), musicians and scientists alike still cannot agree on what it is or how it develops. Some researchers hold that it is entirely innate, although there is little compelling evidence for this. Many studies suggest it can be fostered through early musical training. Deutsch (2013) proposes that AP learning is subject to a maturational constraint and may be subserved by the same brain mechanism as language acquisition. If this is the case, then it is of interest that adults are capable of learning to speak a second language to a native-like level (Ioup et al., 1994; Bongaerts et al., 2000), although this certainly presents a great challenge to them (Hyltenstam & Abrahamsson, 2000). Bley-Vroman (1990) suggests that adults undergo a fundamentally different language acquisition process to children, which is broadly symptomatic of general adult learning. This may also be true of AP acquisition and could account for possessors who exhibit only partial AP, usually limited to particular timbres and ranges, and frequently aided by motor memory (Ross et al., 2005). It is unclear whether this is a different ability to ‘true AP,’ or merely represents less proficiency on certain dimensions of the same skill. Many studies point to a continuous range of AP performance in the population (Bermudez & Zatorre, 2009; Miyazaki et al., 2018). In light of this, I have proposed an “AP fundamental difference hypothesis.”

Two recent studies provide suggestive evidence that adults can learn AP (Van Hedger et al., 2019; Wong et al., 2020a). Furthermore, evidence that AP performance is susceptible to recent experience suggests its degree and quality are not rigidly determined in childhood for ‘native’ possessors. There is evidence that non-AP possessing adults demonstrate ‘implicit AP’ through their ability to accurately sing the opening pitches of well-known songs (Levitin, 1994). Considering this, I have tested the theory that adults can learn AP through training to associate pitch labels with ‘melody triggers’ (Aruffo, 2007). I have also explored whether : a) identifying pitches within a musical listening task presents a different (and greater) challenge to identifying isolated pitches; and b) this dimension of AP can be trained.

In this talk I will present and explore my findings.

Biography

Sam Leak is a London-based Jazz pianist described by JazzFM’s Helen Mayhew as ‘one of the brightest stars in the Jazz piano galaxy, a heavenly improviser, and a brilliant prospect for the future.’ His eponymous album ‘Aquarium’ was listed in MOJO Magazine as one of the ‘Top Ten International Releases of the Year, 2011.’ Jamie Cullum has described his cohort as ‘the heavyweights of the British Jazz scene’ and The New York City Jazz Record described his most recent album, ‘Adrift,’ as “magical …constantly evolving and engaging.”

He is also a Senior Lecturer and Pathway Leader at Middlesex University, and a visiting lecturer at various institutions, including the University of Surrey and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. His doctoral thesis (University of Cambridge) explores whether adults can learn absolute pitch.

Zoom link

https://zoom.us/j/99433440421?pwd=ZWxCQXFZclRtbjNXa0s2K1Q2REVPZz09

This talk is part of the CMS seminar series in the Faculty of Music series.

This talk is included in these lists:

• CMS computer room, Faculty of Music (11 West Road, Cambridge, CB3 9DP)
• CMS seminar series in the Faculty of Music

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