Absolute pitch

[richard_sloat]

Once again...

Does Richard have absolute pitch?

Did Karen have?

Mr. Schmidt, in your research for the book have you come accross any mention of Richard and/or Karen having absolute pitch?

And for curiosity only: being a music teacher, how rare it is for you to have students with absolute pitch in your classes?

 

[newvillefan]

Richard was once asked this on his website 'Fans Ask' section and this was his reply:

"People can be born with perfect pitch and not be musical at all. As long as they know a C or A for example, a car horn will sound and they will know what note it is. I do not, nor did Karen, have perfect pitch. We have relative perfect and sang perfectly in tune. Once it was established what the first note was, we could tell what any note was after that. The teacher would play little motifs, or “melodies”, and we were supposed to write them down. It was really simple stuff (if you could do it!). I can play almost anything by ear; no bragga docio, it’s something I was born with."

 

[richard_sloat]

Thank you, Mr. newvillefan! I have read that section more than once and have completely forgotten about this. I'm starting singing lessons next March and I can't wait to know whether I have absolute pitch, it's impossible for me to know it right now because I don't know what the notes are called so I can't identify them.