このブログでも過去何度か触れている話題。
I also have what is called « absolute pitch » because I learned to play the piano from the age of three.
It’s the ability to hear all the basic notes as if they were sung in « Do, Re, Mi ». It doesn’t mean that you can hear all the notes with « Do, Re, Mi », but I think you can hear almost 100% of single notes of instruments.
I also heard that it’s absolutely impossible to transpose karaoke. I really can’t do that.
A little while ago, around the end of the year, I was talking about « moving de » with my music friends on FB, and I was curious about the topic of absolute pitch. (I still feel very uncomfortable with the expressions « moving do » and « fixed do »…)
What is « moving de »? I’d like to write a little bit about the absolute pitch I felt again at that time.
I didn’t realize it until I was in high school, which is pretty late.
I realized that I had absolute pitch when I started playing the trumpet in the brass band. Rather than saying that I realized it, it is more correct to say that I thought it was a normal ability.
I was in a state of confusion for about a year.
I still remember how shocked I was, because I had never imagined that it was natural to hear sounds in « do, re, mi ».
Hazuki Maiso’s « Absolute Sound » was actually rather boring.
I’m afraid I’m being kind of disingenuous…
This book is about 20 years old now.
Hatsuki Mitsuo
新潮社 2006-04-25
Sales Ranking : 119965
My honest opinion is that the first half was interesting, but the second half was boring. I don’t know, the more I read the book, the more I felt that it was just like that.
I think the main reason is that it wasn’t fresh at all.
I know the sound, but I can’t take it.
Especially with violin, it’s true that once you play a note, you can instantly tell if it’s right or not. But, of course, it doesn’t mean that you can guess the sound for sure.
It’s the same with the horn.
I guess that means you can’t rely on your ears to get the right pitch. That’s right (laughs).
Is it subtly off? Part 1: A=440Hz
This is a surprisingly deep-rooted problem, but only if you’re playing an orchestra.
In many cases, pianos are tuned at A=440Hz, and because it’s an orchestra (A=442 or 443Hz), as you play, you unconsciously lower the standard to 440Hz, which means it becomes a little lower.
I was particularly troubled by this phenomenon on the horn.
Are you subtly off? No.2: I’m not good at « Do » and « So ».
Actually, this is an even more serious problem. I may not be able to overcome it yet.
That one is still at a manageable level. You get used to it after a few years. However, I still don’t know how to overcome No.2.
The pitch of the « Do » that is ingrained in my body is somehow slightly raised.
I don’t know exactly what caused it, but it seems that, for example, the Do note in the classroom or on our piano was relatively high compared to the A=440Hz standard, and I developed a slightly misaligned sense of absolute pitch for some notes.
Maybe it’s because of that, but I’m not very good at the « so » part either. Yes, I really hate the G line on the violin.
When I’m practicing scales, ensembles, etc., it doesn’t affect me that much. It makes me feel uneasy.
I wonder if there are any people with absolute pitch who have this problem?
Are you glad you have absolute pitch?
I guess this is still « yes ».
It can be more of a hindrance to your musical activities than you might expect, but it’s certainly interesting to hear a world where various sounds can be heard as « do, re, mi ».
でも必要？といわれると、なんとも言えない。もちろんなくたって全く問題ないから。あったらあったで悩みもるし、もっともそれもたいしたものではないけど。
