Using Your Eyes to Hear Music

You've probably heard that some people like to watch, but many miss ideal opportunities to tune their ears when live music is around. Watching musicians perform can accelerate your ability to hear the music, especially the details.

When a live band is at your club or event, it's a perfect time to tune your hearing. Some people simply ignore the band and pretend a DJ is playing, except for complaining the tunes are too long. (Many times, they're right.)

If there's a live band playing at your next dance, take a couple tunes to watch the musicians individually and try to hear what they are playing. (Perfect for break times.) Visually focus on one musician at a time, matching their movements to the sounds of their instruments. You can focus on one musician for most of the tune, or visually wander around, watching the musician playing the most interesting sounds at that time. (I do both, depending on my mood.)

Your goal is to hear the sounds of the individual instruments, while mostly ignoring the other on the bandstand. For example:

• Can you hear the piano sounds matching her hand movements?
• Is the cowbell part matching his pounding?
• You can see the bass player plucking the strings, but are you hearing the low notes that match?
  
• Do you hear the sounds from each individual percussionist, as they strike each instrument?
  

Some things are easier than others, and depending on your prior experience, some musicians are easy to hear, and some are challenging. In all cases seeing them perform makes it easier to hear the sounds, and you'll be surprised what you can hear while you're watching.

If live music isn't an option in your scene, then there are hundreds of clips available on YouTube. They provide much of the same experience and in some cases are better because you can find instructional clips, focusing on one instrument at a time. Of course, the ability to rewind and replay is also a huge bonus.

The primary down side is on some clips the music and visuals are out of sync. This is usually more an issue with live band videos, where the quality of the original recording isn't always great. Sometimes the camera angles don’t allow you to see the musicians hands, and you want to see them actually playing the instruments.

Below is an instructional example I like, with examples of individual instruments playing in most salsa tunes. It's a quick introduction and is NOT comprehensive, but it will give you some good ideas. You can clearly see her playing and hear the sounds as she plays. Watch it a couple times (or more), ideally on a computer with quality speakers.



You may not hear the piano player in the music on your iPod, but live (or via video) you can see her pounding on the keyboard AND match what you are seeing with the sounds. The clip below is a live band example (same piano player). As discussed earlier, the down side is the camera person decides where to focus. Toward the end of the tune below (around 9:15 or so), the drummer is soloing, but it's clear to me the person with the camera doesn't hear it, so the visual focus is elsewhere.

Check out the piano when you can, and during her solo (~3:50) she sings some of the parts she is playing, further making the visual match the hands. I’d like a better angle on her hands, but you’ll get the idea. In a live club, you should move around so you see the piano players’ hands clearly, while they are playing. On video, you take what you can get.



Watching musicians is a powerful way to improve your ability to pick out sounds. Clips can be good, but live is often better, where you decide on your visual focus and can match the sounds.

The next time a live band is playing where you are dancing sit out a few tunes and watch. It will open up new worlds for your dancing as you advance. By definition, dancing to the music requires you to hear what the musicians are playing, even if you can't see them.

I'll post some additional visual examples I like in future postings.

Let me know what you're doing to tune your ears.

Side note: When I'm working with someone in private lessons, I rarely start with complex salsa music or even percussion sections. Most people learn faster by hearing fewer instruments, in a simpler context and build up rather than starting with complex music like the live clip above. That said, when you are around a live band or have some good clips, your eyes can help your ears grow much faster.

Related Articles:
Air Guitar, Air Drums: A One Man Band

The man who is too old to learn was probably always too old to learn.
--Caryl Haskins