1.2. Aural skills
On the one hand, a fundamental question to address is how the ability to play by ear fits within the domain of aural skills. To better understand its place and function, this section will also explore the foundations of the skill, aiming to identify the core elements that must be developed. On the other hand, this section will also examine the specific role of playing by ear within the broader framework of general musical skills. To this end, various educational models will be analysed in order to understand how this ability interacts with other fundamental skills that, together, contribute to the development of a well-rounded musician.
1.2.1. Chenette
Chenette is a distinguished music educator known for his expertise in aural skills and music cognition. His books and articles offer innovative methodologies for developing aural proficiency, emphasizing pattern recognition, tonal context, and active listening. By bridging theoretical understanding and practical application, Chenette has become a pivotal figure in modern music education. Chenette (2021) explores the concept of "truly aural skills", defining them as those that directly engage working memory and attentional control with minimal reliance on theoretical mediation. In his article, "What Are the Truly Aural Skills?" Chenette critiques the traditional alignment of aural skills instruction with music theory curricula, arguing that it often prioritizes theoretical knowledge and cognitive processing over sensory-based and perceptual engagement with music. For instance, using harmonic dictation as a case study, Chenette highlights how frameworks like roman numerals and inversion symbols can interfere with the accurate identification of what students are hearing, redirecting attention away from direct perceptual goals (Chenette, 2021).
Chenette (2021) emphasizes the importance of developing perceptual fundamentals—core musical tasks that rely on minimal theoretical mediation— that serve as essential foundations for more advanced musical abilities. These tasks are grounded in direct sensory experience rather than abstract cognitive processing, and include: attentional control, audiation, pitch memory, basic singing ability, chunking, metric entrainment, recognition of repetition and contrast or the understanding of sound-symbol relationships. A key component underpinning these skills is working memory, which refers to the cognitive system responsible for temporarily storing and manipulating information. This system is closely tied to attentional control (Cowan et. al, 2004), making focused and sustained attention a cornerstone of perceptual skill development. According to Chenette, these skills are not only prerequisites for higher-level musicianship, but also represent the kind of listening most central to real-world musical engagement.
Building on these concepts, Chenette (2022) proposes a comprehensive framework of foundational perceptual skills, organized into seven interrelated categories:
- Attention – Developing skills such as attentional control within complex textures, listening for affect, holistic (gestalt) hearing, and focusing on specific lines like bass parts.
- Moving to Music (Meter) – Internalizing meter through physical movement, beat-finding, conducting, and recognizing pick-ups, beat divisions, and rhythmic structure.
- Tonic, Pitch Collection, and Solfège – Cultivating an internal map of key, identifying tonic and key intuitively or through other methods, exploring chromaticism, and modulations using solfège.
- Music’s Materiality – Training the ear to recognize timbre, envelope, dynamics, register, and texture as expressive tools and perceptual landmarks.
- Musical Memory – Strengthening auditory memory through chunking, extractive listening, building a library of known musical patterns, and formal memorization strategies.
- Internal Hearing and Intonation – Developing internal pitch accuracy through subvocalization, tuning intervals and melodies, kinesthetic imagery, and expressive tuning on one’s instrument.
- Rhythm Skills – Deepening rhythmic perception and execution through activities involving protonotation, subdivision, various meters, rhythmic cells, syncopation, and meter identification.
Together, these perceptual fundamentals create a solid groundwork for meaningful and expressive music-making. Chenette’s approach highlights that before advancing toward complex theoretical tasks, musicians should be equipped with strong aural intuition, attentional flexibility, and internal musical imagery—skills rooted in perception, embodiment, and memory.
Connecting these ideas to the present research, playing by ear involves the ability to retain and manipulate sound in working memory, to shift attention flexibly across different musical elements and to respond intuitively to patterns and structures without the support of notation. It also requires the development of inner hearing, which acts as a vital bridge between perception and action. In this sense, playing by ear is not only an outcome of well-developed perceptual skills, but also a dynamic tool for further strengthening them.
Chenette (2021) advocates for reimagining aural skills curricula by proposing a new model in which perception-based aural skills form the core of music education. These ideas are expressed in the alternative model of aural skills instruction, which is shown in Figure 1. In his circular diagram, these foundational skills are placed at the center, reflecting their universal relevance across all musical disciplines. Around this core are various subfields of music, with specific tasks radiating outward based on how much they depend on theoretical mediation. Tasks nearest the center rely primarily on direct perception, while those further out require greater abstraction and specialized knowledge. This model highlights the idea that perceptual training is not merely a support skill, but the essential foundation upon which all advanced musical learning is built.
Aligning with all these ideas, Chenette (2021) distinguishes between learning goals and content goals in aural skills instruction, critiquing traditional curricula for prioritizing theoretical content. He advocates focusing on skills which engage working memory and support flexible, transferable musicianship. By shifting from content-driven to learning-driven goals, educators can create more inclusive and relevant curricula that prepare students for diverse musical disciplines and enhance their perceptual skills.
Figure 1. An alternative model of aural skills instruction. Chenette, T. (2021). What are truly aural skills? Music Theory Online, 27(2). Copyright 2021 by Society for Music Theory, https://www.mtosmt.org/issues/mto.21.27.2/mto.21.27.2.chenette.php