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foundation · Karpinski / Conservatory

Melody Shape

Hear the shape of a melody before the exact notes — contour hearing

A short melody plays. You trace its shape — does it go up, down, up-then-down, leap-then-step? Contour recognition is the first stage of melodic hearing and develops before exact pitch identification.

How it works

  1. 1.
    Hear the melody
    A 4-8 note melody plays.
  2. 2.
    Draw the contour
    On screen, trace the shape of the melody with your finger — up for ascending, down for descending. App captures your drawing.
  3. 3.
    Compare
    App overlays your traced contour on the actual pitch contour.
  4. 4.
    Sing it
    Sing the melody back, focusing on matching the shape even if exact pitches are off.

Prerequisites

pitch_matching_basic

Cadence

~5 min · 5× per week · 3 weeks to competency
Start practice →