5 ms·

An "impossible" mode could remove the sound played when selecting a note. Only those with perfect pitch would be able to get it though (or someone using another

An "impossible" mode could remove the sound played when selecting a note. Only those with perfect pitch would be able to get it though (or someone using another piano / keyboard for reference). As a slight aside, I have always wondered (and never really found a conclusive answer) whether it's possible to train your absolute pitch perception. I have perfect pitch so I can't really test myself fairly (although it does make this puzzle very easy for me!). I've read on multiple occasions that exposure / training as a child is the best way to get it for life, and being musical as a kid might explain my ability to detect absolute pitch.

ska 3y ago
I remember reading a paper ages ago that claimed perfect pitch rates were higher in populations whose 1st language was tonal - if true that's support that it is to some degree evidence of learn-ability, but maybe only extremely young (even pre-language).
- mkl 3y ago
  This is well-established: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absolute_pitch https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absolute_pitch
- anon291 3y ago
  There's good evidence that adults can learn. Studies show that adults who practice everyday achieve significantly better than random scores on tests of perfect pitch.
aidos 3y ago
Or maybe make it so there’s no backspace? It’s a bit easy in it’s current form.
- lpnotes 3y ago
  @aidos Did you try "hard" mode, out of curiosity? If that's still easy, maybe an "impossible" mode with 3 listens, 8 tiles, and no backspaces is something we can do...
mkl 3y ago
It is technically possible to acquire as an adult, but challenging: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18227794 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18227794, also https://news.uchicago.edu/story/acquiring-perfect-pitch-may-be-possible-some-adults https://news.uchicago.edu/story/acquiring-perfect-pitch-may-...
- dwringer 3y ago
  I've always had great relative pitch but not "perfect pitch"; hearing a note out of the blue without any known context and being able to name it was always a struggle for me, but I did manage to do it first try on this quiz. Different timbres make it easier or harder in my experience. I'm also pretty sure the only reason I can do it now is because with age I got some hearing loss that's not evenly distributed across frequencies so now the difference between different notes is more pronounced.
jrajav 3y ago
It's possible but for anyone who would actually care to acquire it (i.e. musicians), relative pitch is just as useful for any task that matters and much easier to acquire. Most acquire it by accident. And arguably, perfect pitch isn't desirable anyway, since standard 12-tone equal temperament is not the "perfect" form of music by any measure. The tuning basis of 440hz is completely arbitrary, and there are plenty of examples of the tuning in any genre being changed (usually to a higher pitch) for excitements' sake. Plus, mathematically any form of dynamic just intonation is superior to fixed 12-tone equal temperament. Relative pitch remains useful in these contexts, while absolute pitch does not.
- xeonmc 3y ago
  > relative pitch is just as useful for any task relative pitch is not just useful, it is absolutely mandatory to do any music at all. Absolute pitch on the other hand is just a convenience.
  - Zircom 3y ago
    There's plenty of percussion instruments where pitch isn't a concern at all.
    - AlecSchueler 3y ago
      But enough where it does matter that a percussionist will probably have to consider pitch often enough.

ska 3y ago

I remember reading a paper ages ago that claimed perfect pitch rates were higher in populations whose 1st language was tonal - if true that's support that it is to some degree evidence of learn-ability, but maybe only extremely young (even pre-language).

mkl 3y ago
This is well-established: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absolute_pitch https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absolute_pitch
anon291 3y ago
There's good evidence that adults can learn. Studies show that adults who practice everyday achieve significantly better than random scores on tests of perfect pitch.

aidos 3y ago

Or maybe make it so there’s no backspace? It’s a bit easy in it’s current form.

lpnotes 3y ago
@aidos Did you try "hard" mode, out of curiosity? If that's still easy, maybe an "impossible" mode with 3 listens, 8 tiles, and no backspaces is something we can do...

mkl 3y ago

It is technically possible to acquire as an adult, but challenging: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18227794 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18227794, also https://news.uchicago.edu/story/acquiring-perfect-pitch-may-be-possible-some-adults https://news.uchicago.edu/story/acquiring-perfect-pitch-may-...

dwringer 3y ago
I've always had great relative pitch but not "perfect pitch"; hearing a note out of the blue without any known context and being able to name it was always a struggle for me, but I did manage to do it first try on this quiz. Different timbres make it easier or harder in my experience. I'm also pretty sure the only reason I can do it now is because with age I got some hearing loss that's not evenly distributed across frequencies so now the difference between different notes is more pronounced.

jrajav 3y ago

It's possible but for anyone who would actually care to acquire it (i.e. musicians), relative pitch is just as useful for any task that matters and much easier to acquire. Most acquire it by accident. And arguably, perfect pitch isn't desirable anyway, since standard 12-tone equal temperament is not the "perfect" form of music by any measure. The tuning basis of 440hz is completely arbitrary, and there are plenty of examples of the tuning in any genre being changed (usually to a higher pitch) for excitements' sake. Plus, mathematically any form of dynamic just intonation is superior to fixed 12-tone equal temperament. Relative pitch remains useful in these contexts, while absolute pitch does not.

xeonmc 3y ago
> relative pitch is just as useful for any task relative pitch is not just useful, it is absolutely mandatory to do any music at all. Absolute pitch on the other hand is just a convenience.
- Zircom 3y ago
  There's plenty of percussion instruments where pitch isn't a concern at all.
  - AlecSchueler 3y ago
    But enough where it does matter that a percussionist will probably have to consider pitch often enough.