Melodic Dictation Studio
Hear a short melody, write it on the staff, and get feedback on every note.
What it trains
Melodic Dictation Studio generates a new melody each time, plays it, and asks you to write it down. You set the length, range, key, rhythm and number of replays. When you check your answer, every note is marked for pitch and rhythm, and the correct melody appears beneath yours so you can hear and see the difference.
- Writing down melodies you hear, in pitch and rhythm
- Hearing scale degrees and melodic shapes in major and minor keys
- Hearing rhythms from quarter notes up to sixteenths and dotted figures
Exercises
- Melodic dictation
- Hear the melody, write each note on the staff by clicking or with the keyboard, then check it note by note.
- Pitch-only dictation
- The rhythm is written for you, so you only write the pitches.
What makes it a Studio Edition
Compared with the Foundations tools, this edition asks more of you in concrete ways:
- Written exercises
- You do not choose from multiple answers. You write the whole melody yourself, pitch and rhythm, on the staff.
- Note-by-note checking
- Each note is marked separately for pitch and for rhythm, with the correct version shown alongside yours.
- Material that never runs out
- Every melody is generated from melodic rules for its key and range — stepwise motion with balanced leaps, leaps followed by a step back, and a clear close on the tonic.
Try it
A short interactive demo built from the same code as the real tool.
Settings you can change
- Length: 2, 3, 4, 6 or 8 bars
- Range: an octave, a 10th or a 12th
- Key: C major, any major key, any minor key, or any key up to a chosen number of sharps or flats
- Rhythm complexity, levels 1 to 4
- Time signature: 2/4, 3/4, 4/4 or 6/8
- Number of replays: 1, 2, 3, 5 or unlimited
- First note given, and a key-setting cadence before each melody
- Tempo, tone (keyboard or guitar), and treble or bass clef
Instruments and clefs
Treble or bass staff with key signatures, with keyboard or guitar tone. Notes can be entered on the staff, on an on-screen keyboard, or from your computer keyboard.
Reference view
A reference view plays the scale and tonic chord of any key, with every degree shown on the staff.
Who it’s for
- Students practising dictation who want unlimited new melodies
- Players who want to write down what they hear more quickly and accurately
Who it isn’t for
- Anyone who cannot hear audio — dictation depends entirely on listening
- Complete beginners — it helps to know note names and basic rhythms first
What you need
- A modern web browser on a computer, tablet or phone
- Speakers or headphones
- The ability to hear audio — this tool includes ear training that depends on listening
About the sound: all instrument sounds are synthesized in your browser. They are not recordings of real instruments.
In every tool
- Instant feedback on every answer, with ✓ and ✗ marks and the correct answer shown.
- Settings that save themselves, plus named practice sets you can switch between.
- A session summary when you finish, with your accuracy and the items to review.
- A reference view for looking things up without being quizzed.
- Progress and streaks: accuracy over time and your weakest items, stored only on your device.
- Progress backup: move your progress to another device with a backup code or file.
- Works offline once unlocked, and installs to your home screen or desktop.
- Keyboard shortcuts, visible focus, a larger-interface setting, and dark mode.