Why you DON'T want Perfect Pitch

Summary

This video explores the phenomenon of perfect pitch, the rare ability to identify musical notes without a reference. It discusses the challenges faced by those with perfect pitch, such as the tendency to focus on note names over relationships and the potential loss of this ability with age. The script also delves into the different levels of pitch perception, from untrained to absolute pitch, and touches on the benefits of relative pitch for musicians. It concludes with the idea that while perfect pitch is impressive, it may come with drawbacks, suggesting that relative pitch could be more advantageous in the long run.

Takeaways

• 🎼 Absolute pitch, also known as perfect pitch, is the ability to identify or reproduce a musical note without a reference tone.
• 🔍 People with perfect pitch may struggle with recognizing the relative relationships between notes, focusing more on the specific note names.
• 🎵 A 2002 study showed that musicians with perfect pitch had difficulty recognizing transposed melodies compared to those without perfect pitch.
• 👶 The development of absolute pitch is often linked to early childhood musical training and exposure to tonal languages.
• 🚫 It is generally believed that perfect pitch cannot be acquired by adults; it is a skill developed in early childhood.
• 🎷 Quasi-absolute pitch is a form of pitch recognition based on memory and familiarity with specific instrument timbres.
• 🎶 Heightened tonal memory allows individuals to reproduce songs they've heard frequently, not necessarily due to perfect pitch.
• 🔄 Relative pitch is the ability to identify the relationships between musical elements such as notes, scales, and chords.
• 🌈 The script uses color perception as an analogy to explain the different levels of pitch perception, from untrained to absolute pitch.
• 📉 Studies suggest that individuals with perfect pitch may lose this ability as they age, with their pitch perception shifting.
• 🎥 The video is sponsored by Curiosity Stream and Nebula, promoting a documentary on Frank Sinatra and offering a bundle subscription deal.

Q & A

What is perfect pitch and how does it relate to identifying notes?

Perfect pitch, also known as absolute pitch, is the ability to identify or reproduce a musical note without the use of a reference tone. It's like perceiving the 'color' of a note without having to compare it to anything else.

Why might people with perfect pitch struggle with identifying which of two notes is higher?

People with perfect pitch might struggle because they focus more on the specific 'name' of the note (its pitch chroma) rather than the relative relationship between the notes.

What is the difference between melodies being transposed to different keys?

When melodies are transposed to different keys, the intervals between the notes remain the same, but the actual notes change. This can be confusing for those with perfect pitch because they may perceive the melodies as different due to the change in starting notes.

What was the finding of the 2002 study involving musicians with and without perfect pitch?

The 2002 study found that musicians with perfect pitch were less able to recognize the transpositional identity of a melody when it was played back in a different key compared to musicians without perfect pitch.

What are some potential downsides to having perfect pitch as a musician?

Some downsides include the possibility of losing perfect pitch as one ages, and the potential difficulty in perceiving the transpositional identity of melodies, as well as the unique challenges of adapting to different tuning systems or cultures.

What is quasi-absolute pitch and how does it differ from absolute pitch?

Quasi-absolute pitch is a form of pitch recognition that relies on memory rather than immediate perception. It's like remembering that an apple is red and then associating that memory with the color perception, as opposed to absolute pitch, which is immediate and requires no thought process.

How does the ability to develop absolute pitch relate to language and musical training?

People who speak tonal languages or who start their musical training at an early age are more likely to develop absolute pitch. This is because the encoding of pitch occurs very early on in auditory perception.

What is the difference between relative pitch and absolute pitch?

Relative pitch is the ability to identify the relationships between notes, scales, chords, and melodies, whereas absolute pitch is the ability to identify the specific note without any reference. Relative pitch is more about the context and relationships, while absolute pitch is about the specific identity of the note.

What is the 'leviton effect' and how does it relate to pitch perception?

The 'leviton effect' refers to a heightened tonal memory, where individuals can reproduce a song in the correct key because they have heard it so often. It's a form of quasi-absolute pitch that relies on memory rather than immediate perception.

How does the perception of pitch relate to the perception of color?

The perception of pitch is often compared to the perception of color as a way to explain the different levels of pitch recognition. Just as some people can see the world in color while others are colorblind, some can perceive pitch with absolute clarity (absolute pitch), while others may only perceive relationships (relative pitch) or have no specific pitch perception (untrained pitch).

What are some potential issues with losing perfect pitch as one ages?

Losing perfect pitch can be disorienting and frustrating for musicians, as it can feel like a fundamental shift in their perception of music. It's like waking up one day and seeing the world in a hue-shifted color palette, where everything appears wrong but everyone else insists it's normal.

Outlines

00:00

🎵 Understanding Perfect Pitch and Its Challenges

This paragraph introduces the concept of perfect pitch, the ability to identify musical notes without a reference. It discusses a test involving two notes and the challenge of identifying which is higher. The script highlights that people with perfect pitch might struggle with recognizing the relationship between notes due to their focus on pitch chroma. It also touches on a study where musicians with perfect pitch had difficulty recognizing transposed melodies, suggesting that perfect pitch is not always advantageous. The paragraph ends by introducing the idea that there might be downsides to having perfect pitch and sets the stage for further exploration of this concept.

05:01

👂 The Spectrum of Pitch Perception and its Categories

This paragraph delves into the different levels of pitch perception, ranging from untrained to absolute pitch. It uses the analogy of color perception to explain these categories, with absolute pitch being akin to seeing the world in color. The script discusses how early musical training and tonal language exposure can influence the development of absolute pitch. It also introduces quasi-absolute pitch and heightened tonal memory, which are forms of pitch recognition based on memory rather than immediate perception. The paragraph concludes by contrasting these with relative pitch, which is the most useful for musicians and involves understanding the relationships between notes.

10:02

📉 The Decline of Perfect Pitch with Age

This paragraph addresses the unfortunate reality that individuals with perfect pitch may lose this ability as they age. It cites studies showing that many people with perfect pitch over the age of 45 experienced a shift in their pitch perception. The script includes personal accounts from musicians like Gary Burton who have lost their perfect pitch, describing the experience as confusing and disorienting. The loss is likened to a color shift in the world's appearance, where the individual's perception no longer aligns with the reality of musical notes. The paragraph concludes with the suggestion that perfect pitch may not be as desirable as it seems, given the potential for its eventual loss.

Keywords

💡Perfect Pitch

Perfect pitch, also known as absolute pitch, is the ability to identify or recreate a musical note without the use of a reference tone. It is a rare skill that some musicians possess, allowing them to name any note they hear. In the video, perfect pitch is the central theme, discussed through various examples and studies, such as the test of identifying which of two notes is higher and the challenges faced by individuals with perfect pitch in recognizing transposed melodies.

💡Relative Pitch

Relative pitch is the skill of identifying the relationship between musical notes without necessarily knowing the specific note names. It is a more common ability among musicians and is often taught through music education. The script mentions relative pitch as the most useful skill for musicians, contrasting it with perfect pitch, and describes how musicians with relative pitch can identify the structure of chords and melodies.

💡Pitch Chroma

Pitch chroma is a concept that relates to the perception of pitch in a way that is analogous to color perception. People with perfect pitch often describe their experience as identifying notes by their 'color' or chroma. The video script uses the analogy of color perception to explain different levels of pitch recognition, from untrained pitch to absolute pitch.

💡Quasi-Absolute Pitch

Quasi-absolute pitch is a term used to describe a level of pitch recognition that is not as immediate as perfect pitch but is based on memory and familiarity with certain notes or instruments. The script explains that musicians with quasi-absolute pitch can identify notes on specific instruments they are familiar with, like guitarists knowing the sound of the open E string.

💡Tonal Language

A tonal language is a language in which the pitch contour of a word changes its meaning, such as Mandarin Chinese. The video script suggests that people who speak tonal languages are more likely to develop absolute pitch, possibly due to the importance of pitch in their native language's communication.

💡Categorical Perception

Categorical perception refers to the ability to categorize sensory information into distinct groups, much like assigning colors to objects. In the context of the video, it is related to how individuals with perfect pitch categorize pitches into specific note names. The script discusses how this perception is influenced by language and cultural factors.

💡12-Tone Equal Temperament

12-Tone Equal Temperament is a musical tuning system where the octave is divided into 12 equal parts, each corresponding to a specific note on a piano or other instruments. The video script mentions that most studies on perfect pitch have focused on this tuning system, suggesting that the perception of pitch may be influenced by the tuning system one is familiar with.

💡Transposition

Transposition in music is the process of shifting a melody or chord progression to a different key without changing its overall structure. The script discusses a study where musicians with perfect pitch had difficulty recognizing transposed melodies, indicating that the perception of pitch can be affected by the key in which a melody is presented.

💡Leviton Effect

The Leviton effect refers to the phenomenon where individuals can recall the pitch of a frequently heard song so well that they can reproduce it accurately. The script mentions this effect as a form of heightened tonal memory, which can be present in both musicians and non-musicians, and is an example of how pitch memory can be used to identify notes.

💡Nebula

Nebula is a streaming service mentioned in the script, which is creator-owned and features bonus content from various YouTube creators, including an extended version of the video discussed. It represents the broader community of content creators and is used as an example of a platform supporting in-depth and meaningful content.

💡Curiosity Stream

Curiosity Stream is a documentary streaming service highlighted in the script, offering a wide range of documentaries, including one on Frank Sinatra's alleged perfect pitch. The service is presented as a sponsor of the video and is used as an example of a platform providing educational and engaging content.

Highlights

Introduction to a test of perfect pitch and its challenges, especially for those with the ability.

The paradox that people with perfect pitch might struggle more with identifying the higher note between two played notes.

A 2002 study showing musicians with perfect pitch have difficulty recognizing transposed melodies.

The concept of perfect pitch as a 'disease' and its rarity, affecting less than 1% of the population.

Explanation of pitch perception as a gradient with four categories: untrained, relative pitch, quasi-absolute pitch, and absolute pitch.

The idea of pitch chroma or 'pitch color' as a way to conceptualize different levels of pitch perception.

The influence of tonal languages and early musical training on the development of absolute pitch.

The belief that perfect pitch cannot be learned as an adult and is developed in early childhood.

Quasi-perfect pitch or 'heightened tonal memory' and its reliance on familiar timbres and anchor points.

The practical use of relative pitch in identifying musical relationships without naming specific notes.

Categorical perception of pitch and its dependence on language, drawing parallels with color perception.

The limitation of studies on perfect pitch to the 12-tone equal temperament system.

The potential downsides of having perfect pitch, including the possibility of losing it as one ages.

Evidence and anecdotes suggesting that perfect pitch may deteriorate over time, affecting musical identity.

The emotional impact of losing perfect pitch on musicians and how it can feel like a distortion of reality.

A discussion on the value of relative pitch over perfect pitch for musicians and music lovers.

Promotion of the Nebula streaming service and its content, including extended versions of videos.

Curiosity Stream promotion and its documentary offerings, including content on Frank Sinatra's alleged perfect pitch.

Invitation to subscribe and support the channel, with a tease of future collaborations between the host and Charles Cornell.

Transcripts

so i'm going to show you a very

interesting test of perfect pitch

your ability to identify a note without

a reference i'm going to play you two

notes

and i'll ask you a question ready okay

here's note 1 and here is note 2.

so my question for you is this

which of these two notes was higher than

the other

this question sounds simple but

statistically speaking if you have

perfect pitch

you are less likely to get this question

correct than

people like me who don't have perfect

pitch because you're perceiving the

pitch

chroma the name of the note more readily

than the relationship between the notes

it's very interesting here's another one

i'm going to play you two melodies

this is melody one

and melody two

even though the melodies start on

different notes the distances between

the notes is the same

and so we think of them as being the

same melody just transposed to different

keys

but that isn't as immediately obvious to

people with

perfect pitch there's a 2002 study where

musicians with perfect pitch

and without perfect pitch were shown

sheet music of a melody

and then played that melody back in a

different key

they were then asked if the sheet music

was the same

melody as what they were hearing is this

the same melody and if it isn't the same

melody where does the melody change

musicians with perfect pitch fared worse

at perceiving the transpositional

identity of the same

melody than musicians without perfect

pitch

very interesting now don't get me wrong

there are many things that people with

perfect pitch can do that i can't

and i am definitely jealous of what

folks like june lee and jacob collier

can do with their superhuman feats of

ear training but there are some reasons

why you might not want to have

perfect pitch and your life as a

musician or music lover is better

without it

let's get into them this video is

brought to you by curiosity stream and

my streaming service nebula

perfect pitch or technically absolute

pitch is a

disease we're here with charlie charlie

has a really crazy talent he has a

disease that's called perfect pitch and

basically he can hear notes and he knows

what they are

just by listening to him it's hard to

know just how many people are afflicted

by the malady some studies suggest that

it's just one in ten thousand

but the noted epidemiologist jimmy

fallon pegs that number a little bit

higher

do you know what that is perfect pitch

like less than one percent of us have

this talent

and my youtube algorithm breaking poll

pegs that number at

three percent which is a lot higher than

one in ten thousand so

what exactly is going on here

pitch perception exists kind of on a

gradient from

i have no idea what's going on too

you can kind of think of four categories

here untrained

relative pitch quasi-absolute pitch and

absolute pitch

and the way that we're going to talk

about this is in terms of color

perception because that's often how

people with absolute pitch

think of it as pitch chroma pitch color

untrained pitch is when you just don't

categorize pitch when you're listening

to music

it's like seeing the world in black and

white you might have a very deep

relationship to the

objects in the scene the apple tastes

just as fine to you

but you aren't perceiving the pitch

absolute pitch is like seeing the world

in color you don't have to think about

whether or not the apple is red

it's just red the plant is green

the note is f sharp with true absolute

pitch there is no thought process

and no reference the current scientific

thinking suggests that the encoding

occurs

very early on in auditory perception

people who speak

tonal languages like mandarin where the

pitch contour is very important in

communicating information

are more likely to develop absolute

pitch than people who don't natively

speak tonal languages

as well as people who start their

musical training very early on in life

a full 74 of native mandarin speakers

who had their musical training start

before

age five had developed absolute pitch in

one study

way more than that one in ten thousand

numbers cited earlier now i know

this is controversial but it's generally

understood that you

cannot learn perfect pitch as an adult

it is something that

is learned in early childhood and

there's really nothing that you can do

about it

but you can learn something which is

almost as good and that is called

quasi-perfect pitch quasi-absolute pitch

is kind of like

looking at this grayscale image and

seeing the apple and then remembering

oh yeah apples are red and then same

color

it's not as immediate it's based on a

memory but you can use that memory to

your advantage there's a couple of ways

that this works

the first way is what's called true

pitch or instrument specific

absolute pitch it's when you are so

familiar with the timbre of a specific

note on a specific instrument because

you've played it

over and over again it's why many

guitarists just

know what the sound of the open e string

of a guitar is

it's that's the open e string woodwind

players especially in my experience

clarinet players often have this because

they're such a unique tone color to

every note on the instrument

and they become very familiar with those

unique tone colors as they relate to

pitch

this all adds up to the thought process

of hey that's an apple

and apples are red there's also

something called heightened

tonal memory which affects both

musicians and non-musicians

sometimes it's called the leviton effect

where you've heard a song

so often before that you can always

reproduce that song

in the correct key honestly you know

what i go to

i go to a couple things i go to green

dolphin street

for one so i always know where eve i

know i always know where e flat is

i go to the so what baseline so i always

know where

it's a good one yeah that's a real and i

go to an f

blues interesting okay some people might

think i have perfect pitch if i'm quick

enough

at picking out those anchor points using

relative pitch to figure out whatever

the note you just played was

um but that's not what's happening it's

actually just

i'm just bouncing it off of a memory uh

that i have as like an

anchor and then using relative pitch to

to figure it out

like for me unfortunately uh the song

that the leviton effect is most lodged

in my brain

is the last chorus to

don't stop believing by journey

that's that's an e by the way that truck

because

the last chorus of don't stop believing

goes don't stop

which is an a and g sharp and then

that's down to an e

i'm not even gonna check but i don't

have perfect pitch i just

have that tonal memory so deep in my

brain because of cover gigs relative

pitch is the final category and it's

probably the most useful for musicians

it's what we're trained in it's the

ability to identify

notes and scales and chords and melodies

and intervals and the relationships

between them

so if you played this for a trained

musician

they'd probably be able to tell you oh

yes that's a two minor seven

a five seven flat nine and a one major

seven

they wouldn't necessarily be able to

tell you the names of the notes but they

could tell you the relationships between

them

so that if you gave a reference like you

said the first chord began

on the note g they could calculate out

the rest of the notes in the rest of the

chords the implications of this are kind

of weird when you apply the color

analogy here

it's like seeing this image in grayscale

and then being told that the plant is

green

therefore the apple must be red it's

like you're

perceiving the wavelengths of the green

and then calculating out the redness

of the apple having relative pitch is

kind of like being colorblind and then

working out what colors are based on

context color

analogy breaks down a little bit here

but it's still

kind of useful in understanding how

other people

might experience pitch

you know when you assign words like red

to some kind of color

experience you're assigning a category

to that experience it's called

categorical perception and that

categorical perception

is very much dependent on the language

with which you speak so for example

in russian there are multiple words for

what

in english we might just call like blue

like there are multiple words for this

what's interesting is that

studies of perfect pitch and absolute

pitch have really just dealt with one

kind of

category and that is 12 tone equal

temperament

people who are trained in 12 tone equal

temperament are more likely to assign

their perception to the notes of the

piano

i'd be really fascinated to see if that

translates to

different kinds of tuning systems and

different cultures that

didn't have 12 tone equal temperament as

the default but

there haven't been any studies on that

so we shall see

so to recap we have four ways of

experiencing pitch we have

absolute pitch we have quasi-absolute

pitch

we have relative pitch and then we have

the untrained ear

so with all that in mind why possibly

would a musician

not want to have absolute pitch why

wouldn't we want to see the world in

color that seems strange

well i have some unfortunate news for

the people with perfect pitch watching

this video

and it comes from the great concert

pianist abby simon

if you have absolute pitch perfect pitch

if you live long enough you will lose it

rick beatto did a video recently on

people who lose their perfect pitch and

it seems to be that this is something

that happens

universally across the board after a

certain age like if you have it

you only have a short window to enjoy it

and use it before it goes away

so your perfect pitch has visited it no

it's it's it's gone down the tube a

study from 2012 found that 16 out of 20

people tested with absolute pitch over

the age of 45

had their absolute pitch shifted by a

semi-tone or more this was corroborated

by another study in 2016

which also found that this perfect pitch

shift had nothing to do with the

mechanical hearing loss that normally

comes with aging and the society for

music theory listserv researcher david

huron asked the question if there were

any examples of people over the age of

60

who didn't experience this pitch shift

none were given the great jazz

vibraphonist gary burton

has talked frequently about his loss of

perfect pitch

like on this interview from adam tan's

youtube channel well it was

interesting uh it was confusing i lost

the perfect pitch

in 2011 it was something i had gotten

used to and

kind of depended on as a you know a

sense of

always kind of knowing where everything

is suddenly discovered that

you know that piece of information was

no longer

available to me in her master's thesis

understanding and dealing with the loss

of absolute pitch

as one ages mary el bianco catalogues

correspondents with older musicians who

have lost their absolute pitch the

experience was annoying

often getting in the way of my enjoyment

of music i am sad to have lost something

that felt very special to me what was

occurring was

truly jolting to my sense of musicality

and my sense of self another account

reads around the time i got my first

pair of reading glasses my sense of

absolute pitch

started to waver i got c's and b's mixed

up and to be honest

this was a surprisingly alarming

development a whole dimension of my

existence

seemed to fade away the thing to me

that's most frightening about this is

not just that the perfect pitch

goes away like you're now seeing the

world in black and white when you used

to see it in color because it sounds

like that's not really what's happening

to people with perfect pitch as they age

instead

it's like everybody's still seeing the

world in color

but it's all wrong it's like all of a

sudden you wake up

and the world looks like this all weird

and hue shifted

but the apple still is red in reality

and the entire world acts as if it's red

and you remember it being red at one

point but you just

can't see it that way it's like musical

reality is trying to gaslight you

into thinking that your own ears are

wrong

you have to perform the feat of

pretending that the apple is red

day in and day out in your musical life

but to you

no matter how hard you try it isn't

[Music]

so with lots of anecdotal evidence and

some limited research to suggest that if

you have perfect pitch you will

eventually lose it and feel like a

stroke patient who has to fight to force

his limbs to work again

oh god i i'm not sure if i really want

perfect pitch

i i'm happy having relative pitch and

just existing in my own

uh black and white world thank you very

much

[Music]

i talked a lot about pitch perception

with fellow youtuber and memester

charles cornell in a recent conversation

on perfect pitch

there's a channel um hilarious super

talented voice actor pro zd did you ever

see the video that he put out that was i

can recite every line from peter pan

yep i'll run him through oh

take that did you notice what was going

on there that was

very very interesting from a musical

perspective you can watch more of our

conversation over on the extended

version of this video which is available

exclusively

on nebula nebula is a creator-owned

streaming service where you can watch

many of youtube's favorite creators and

also watch bonus content like the

extended version of this video with

charles cornell

it features many of your favorite

youtube educators and creators including

lindsay ellis

legal eagle charles cornell 12 tone

thomas frank

wendover productions and many many more

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