Theta Music Technologies unveils 3 new ear training games for music lovers

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Theta Music Technologies on Thursday added three new titles to its growing collection of music skill games, announcing the new games together with a new version of its acclaimed online ear training system Theta Music Trainer.

The new version features a Personal Trainer component, which recommends specific games and practice levels for each student, based on current skill level and previous game play. Individuals differ greatly in the specific areas of ear training that give them the most difficulty. The Personal Trainer feature helps to pinpoint these areas for each person, resulting in more efficient practice and faster improvement. With the addition of this new functionality, Theta Music Trainer becomes the first online ear training system to offer personalized feedback and recommendations based on automated analysis of game play.

Two of the new games, Dango Brothers and Speed Pitch, are designed to help students sharpen their sense of pitch and intonation. This is a vital musical skill that is required to sing on key or play an instrument in tune with others. The third game, Number Blaster, helps students acquire a basic grasp of numbers as they pertain to scale degrees and chord roman numerals. Much of music is based on numbers, with melodies and chord progressions often represented as numerical sequences.

The new version also contains several new features for music teachers, including online assignment and grade book capability. Theta Music Trainer is ideal for use in the classroom, and can also be used to supplement private instrument/voice lessons. The new version allows teachers to create homework assignments for ear training practice and view the results of each student’s game play. Students can find and complete their assignments online and receive feedback from the teacher.

Finally, along with many cosmetic improvements, the new release of Theta Music Trainer contains a Spanish mode, so that native Spanish speakers can fully enjoy the games, explanations, and other site content in their own language. Launched initially in English and Japanese, Theta Music Trainer was designed from the beginning to be multilingual, and more language translations are planned for future releases.

About Theta Music Trainer

Theta Music Trainer is a complete set of online games designed for ear training and music theory practice. Launched in October 2010, Theta Music Trainer provides musicians of all levels with a deeper understanding of music and a stronger ability to play music by ear. The music training games are classified into four categories: melody, harmony, rhythm and sound. Each game is divided into twenty levels of difficulty. Games start with simple problems and gradually increase in complexity. Subscribers may enroll in a 30-day course which breaks the training into daily workouts of about 10-15 minutes, providing a balanced mix of ear training and music theory practice. Game scores are recorded and players may check their results and progress reports at any time.

Musicians of almost every level and style share a common desire: they would like to have a better ear for the music they play. Musicians with a ‘good ear for music’ are able to improvise and compose music with greater ease. They are also able to memorize music faster and with more accuracy. They can imagine melodies in their minds, and then quickly write them down or play them on an instrument. While these players are often described as ‘gifted’, their ability is actually based upon specific skills that can, in fact, be learned and developed. Some of these skills have traditionally been included in music theory and ear training courses. Others are covered in books, usually with a CD of drills and exercises. The challenge for many students, though, is that the material is often a bit dry and can seem overly academic.

Theta Music Trainer was created with the purpose of injecting an element of fun and excitement into a musician’s daily ear training routine. Rather than simply doing the same drills over and over, the training is based around a set of 15 different games, each designed to strengthen a particular area of musicianship. For example, one game helps the student become familiar with the tones of major and minor scales, while another game trains the student to recognize different types of chords. During a workout session, players move quickly from one game to the next. The variety and pacing of the games are designed to hold the interest and attention of students as they practice a wide range of musical skills.

Pricing Information

The first three levels of all games can be played any number of times with a free account. Full-access subscriptions are available on a monthly or yearly basis, and provide access to all 15 games and all 300 levels. In addition, subscribers are eligible to play the challenging ‘master level’ for each game once they have finished the advanced levels. Monthly subscriptions cost $7.95/month, while yearly subscriptions are priced at $54.00/year. Educational discounts of up to 50% off are available to independent music teachers and studios. Site licenses are available for larger schools and institutions.

For further information, visit http://trainer.thetamusic.com/