THE FRONTLINE
THE JAZZ BASSIST
RUTH GOLLER
What’s that noise? asks jazz ninja Ruth
Recently, I had a conversation about perfect pitch—the ability to identify a note without any other reference—and about the pros and cons of possessing this ability. I myself don’t have perfect pitch, and as a result I’ve had to work hard at my relative pitch—the ability to work out what one note is in relation to another. I’ve worked at this with lots of ear-training exercises, so that in a band situation I can know what is going on harmonically, and respond in an informed and creative way.
For people with perfect pitch, the ability is innate, and in some ways, inescapable. When they hear a note, they don’t have the choice of not knowing what it is. This means that in harmonic terms, it is common for them to try and make things fit together
