24
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How can I slow down a YouTube video I'm trying to analyze or transcribe?
There are at least two options:
Option 1: You can slow down the video by changing the Playback Speed setting
Below are browser instructions (mobile instructions are here)
Click on the Settings menu ...
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21
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How can I slow down a YouTube video I'm trying to analyze or transcribe?
I'd probably recommend starting with the built-in YouTube controls. But for the sake of completeness here's another workflow that makes use of 3rd party software called a "phrase trainer" or ...
- 854
21
votes
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How to notate 3 quarters framed by eighths?
Let's discuss the pros and cons of each version, albeit slightly out of order:
Version 3
This one is mainly non-ideal because of the half note that crosses the midpoint of the first measure. A sight ...
- 84k
19
votes
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How do I distinguish between chords going 'up' and chords going 'down' when writing a harmony?
An F#m chord played below D is also called an F#m chord.
Writing "D , F#m , etc , etc" is a short-hand for the notes you want the performer to play. If that's not specific enough, you will ...
- 7,423
17
votes
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Transcribing as music and relative pitch practice?
Transcribing music is EXCELLENT ear training practice. I like to tell students that transcribing one song to completion is like an entire semester of ear training.
Don’t just listen for intervals and ...
- 25.5k
15
votes
Should one transcribe granular 16th information in sung melodies?
Whether you transcribe literally or not depends on your purpose. If you want to communicate as precisely as possible how the melody is sung, then use the greatest granularity manageable. However, if ...
- 82.2k
12
votes
Can saxophones be in orchestras, not just like the symphonic jazz orchestras/big band?
Yes, there is a body of classical, non-jazz music for saxophone, including works for orchestra. Although not a standard part of most orchestras, saxophones are added when needed.1
A 2014 article in ...
- 82.2k
11
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How do I distinguish between chords going 'up' and chords going 'down' when writing a harmony?
This distinction can’t be made with chord symbols, which indicate only the chord and inversion, but not the voicing (which octave, arrangement of notes above the bass, doubling, etc.)
To specify a ...
- 82.2k
10
votes
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Why did Anna Magdalena Bach write funny accidentals sometimes?
Yes, this seems to have been Bach's (and his family's) practice in the early part of his career. Schweitzer mentions it in his book 'Bach' (1911). I don't think anyone's come up with a plausible ...
- 90.4k
10
votes
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Can this chord be played or is it transcribed incorrectly?
The transcription is correct. Below is a screenshot from a YouTube video that includes the score.
To play the chord, play the grace note (A#) with your pinky, and hold it with the pedal. The remainder ...
- 82.2k
8
votes
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Transcribing music which has no obvious metre
If I were transcribing this, I would approach it just like you have--by tackling one bar at a time. Then I would follow this method.
Within each bar, I would use with the right hand melody/solo line ...
- 11.2k
7
votes
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Why did Liszt change/add so much to his piano transcription of Danse Macabre?
In terms of Liszt’s music, the label “piano transcription” is often misleading. Although Liszt did write many (relatively) faithful transcriptions, such as the Beethoven Symphony series, most of his ...
- 146
7
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Confused by overtones when transcribing music
I think your idea is definitely reasonable: an emphasis in the treble part of any sound will tend to emphasize higher partials which could throw off your transcription. This is vastly more likely to ...
- 18.2k
6
votes
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How do I figure out whether rhythms have beats with 2/3-1/3 splits or 3/4-1/4 splits?
These are definitely triplet subdivisions, not duple 32nds. With experience, you can tell the difference even at fast tempos like this.
If I was doing this transcription, however, I would take a very ...
- 35.1k
6
votes
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How to transcribe Indian classical music using Western music notation?
Most melodies - in any style - can be transcribed using: 1) pitches, 2) rhythms, 3) motives, 4) phrases, 5) overall form.
Unfortunately, in the videos you cited, the musician does not play the ...
- 470
6
votes
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How to add extra notes to the original music sheet
Those circled pitches are pitches played by other musical lines. In this case, the notes that you're thinking of comprise the melody, and these circled notes comprise the accompaniment.
These ...
- 84k
6
votes
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A question about transcribing using a software
I’d say it was the actual act of transcription which brings the most benefit to your musical development, and the medium is secondary. Recognising pitch, harmony, and rhythm, to a level where you can ...
- 2,531
6
votes
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Determining open tunings while transcribing
A few ideas:
If you become familiar with a number of the most common open tunings, some chances are there that the song you're trying to transcribe uses one of them, and at least some of the time you'...
- 6,309
5
votes
How much theory and how much transcribing?
Consider an analogy with literature. You can become an author by reading good books, or by studying language and grammar. In reality, you will want some of both. Each is valuable, but in different ...
- 20.7k
5
votes
What happened to the orchestral scores of Johann Strauss?
A few different orchestrators, Michael Rot among them undertook the gigantic task of recreating the scores of the Strauss dynasty after WW II. These appear under Strauss Edition Wien, available at ...
- 51
5
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Determine whether to keep the original key when arranging a solo piece
When playing any piece on an instrument different from the one(s) it was originally written for, it is extremely common to make minor changes in the peice, including transposing it. Usually those ...
- 56.1k
5
votes
How to work out the key of a song whose chords don't seem to fit an obvious scale?
Regarding the larger question, the key for a song is more about the tonal center than it is about fitting into a pattern of notes (a scale).
Like so many things in music, a tonal center is mostly ...
- 56.1k
5
votes
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Are theremin's pitch hand positions unique?
Mostly no, but maybe in certain situations
In general, the answer is no. When you turn on a theremin, the first thing you have to do is "tune" it. There will usually be object close enough to trigger ...
- 56.1k
5
votes
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the right way to notate enharmonic notes
We would have to see the score to know for sure. But it sounds to me that both those enharmonics should be sharps, because they both go up a half step, making them leading tones or scale steps. Thus,...
- 6,454
5
votes
The "tunelessness" of birdsong in a "Peanuts" comic strip?
I don't know if this is a particular piece, but my guess is that the first three dyads in the right hand should be one step lower. More consonant would be:
This is in contrast to what's written, ...
- 84k
5
votes
Accepted
Transcription Beats per minute
This question is often subjective, but there are some objective rationalizations that make things easier.
I would strongly recommend transcribing this in a way that doesn't use so many small note ...
- 84k
5
votes
Transcription Beats per minute
What I do in these cases is to listen to the drums. Listen to what the drummer is playing and you can easily deduct the tempo. In this song, the Kick Drum and the Snare Drum are being played on the ...
- 31.3k
5
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Is there a name for a part of a recorded song where the music has ended and a spoken audio recording is played?
There's no accepted name for it that I've ever heard. Just describe it in plain English. 'Spoken outro' would do. Can't see any point in adding the extra word 'word' making it 'Spoken word outro'. ...
- 90.4k
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