Here is a collection of fun musical games for all levels and instruments. They’re organized by the type of skill being exercised.
Ear Training & Note Games
Shot in the Dark
Listen to a song you don’t know the key of. Using just one string, find notes that fit the song. Literally just shoot in the dark until you find notes that sound right. You might be surprised at how easy this actually is. Don’t be afraid to play the “wrong” notes, it’s going to happen and that’s how you learn.
Remember which notes work and use them to improvise. If you are working on theory, you can write the names of the notes down and see if you can figure out what scale or key they belong to. For example, if you found the notes A, C, E and G, then it’s either the key of A minor or C major.
For a better challenge, include as many other strings you like. You can also try to find which notes work with each chord in the song, or you can try to find the chords that are in the song, but this is a little more advanced.
Guitar Google
This works for any string instrument actually. Pick a random note, write it down or remember it. Then pick a string and find your note on that string. To find the note, you can start from the open string(fret 0) and count upwards using the Chromatic Scale or the C Scale without sharps or flats. For example, I picked G#, so on the low E string, I start with open E, 1st fret F, 2nd fret F#, 3rd fret G, 4th fret G#, boom! Or, to use just the natural notes as a shortcut, start at low E, next note is 1st fret F, 3rd fret G, then G# is right after that.
For a challenge, repeat the process and find the same note on all 6 strings, one by one. Time yourself for an even harder challenge.
Rhythm Games
The “One“
Pick a random song. While you’re listening, tap along to it, try to find the “beat” or tempo of the song. It should sound even and consistent, like a metronome. This can be tricky with rhythmically complex music, because the rhythm patterns in the song could throw you off. Just keep trying to tap out that consistent tempo.
Once you find it, figure out which beat is the “one”. Often times this just happens naturally, it’s almost like you can feel where it is. If you don’t get it right away, just keep tapping and try counting “one” on different beats to see what fits.
This is a great passive game you don’t need your instrument for, so you can do it anywhere.
Also, easy bonus: if you find the “one”, that means you automatically know the time signature, which is however many beats are in each loop. Do this game with different genres, even ones you aren’t particularly a fan of or familiar with.
Downbeat vs Upbeat
Set a metronome to a slow tempo, around 60BPM. Tap, clap, snap, slap your leg, or play a note or chord to the beat of the metronome. These are the downbeats, the easy part, unless you’re new to the metronome in which case I would spend some time just doing downbeats at different tempos.
The upbeats are exactly halfway between the downbeats, time-wise. It’s tricky at first to get them right because the metronome doesn’t click for those beats so you don’t have a reference to copy. If you do it right, your upbeats should be consistent, and exactly opposite to the downbeats. It should sound like it’s own metronome.
Once you get a feel for both, try playing 4 downbeats followed by 4 upbeats on the next loop, so that every measure, you switch back and forth between both “feels”.
Bonus points if you can play this rhythm using a scale, or group of chords. Feel free to get creative and try different patterns, different combinations of downbeats and upbeats. You can also mix in whatever scales or arpeggios you’re working on.
Need for Speed
Pick a short piece of music, riff or scale. Something that is a measure or two long. Find a moderately slow tempo you can play it cleanly at. Here’s where the fun starts. Add 10BPM to the metronome, and adjust to the new pace. Once you’re comfortable, increase the tempo another 10BPM. Repeat the process, making sure it sounds clean and accurate.
When you get to higher tempos and approach the limits of your maximum speed, it becomes difficult to get comfortable so you have a couple options. You can either practice staying relaxed, which is actually a super helpful skill to build. It’s an interesting feeling when your muscles are doing this crazy fast thing but your brain is completely zenned out. Or, option 2 is just let loose and go beast mode, which is super fun but I don’t recommend making this a habit. You’ll play faster but a lot sloppier. Again, not ideal for a regular practice routine, but it’s just fun to do.
Know Time for Anything
Test your accuracy for finding exact tempos by using the “tap tempo” function on your metronome. For beginners, set your metronome to a moderately slow tempo(60-100BPM). Just listen to the tempo at first, maybe nod your head or tap along once you feel aligned with the pace. Then turn the metronome off and try to tap the exact tempo out using the “tap tempo” button. The metronome will tell you the BPM you’re tapping at.
For more of a challenge, try it without the reference. Just think of a random BPM and tap it out on the “tap tempo” button. The hardest tempos to get right are actually the super slow ones, like below 60. If you can tap out 5bpm accurately, I’ll give you $5000 imaginary dollars.
J Holguin Music 