CifraLab

Random Chord Progression Generator

Generate unpredictable harmonic sequences to practice chord transitions and sight recognition

Sharpen your chord switching speed with fresh progressions each time

How to use it

How to train your harmonic ear in 10 minutes a day

Recognising chords by ear is not a special talent: it is a skill you build by listening carefully and comparing. This trainer uses real guitar recordings and relative-pitch exercises, so you learn how one chord sounds in relation to another, which is exactly what you need to work out songs, accompany singers or improvise.

Listen: major and minor in turn

  1. C
  2. Cm
  3. G
  4. Gm
C, C minor, G and G minor. Focus only on the colour: bright, dark, bright, dark.

  1. What each level trains

    • Level 1, major or minor: the difference is a single note, the third. A major chord has a major third (four semitones above the root) and sounds open; a minor chord has a minor third (three semitones) and sounds darker.
    • Level 2, seventh chords. The dominant seventh chord (7) contains a tritone that wants to resolve. The major seventh chord (maj7) sounds smooth and floating. The minor seventh chord (m7) adds a warm color. These are common sounds in blues, jazz, and pop.
    • Level 3, degrees of the key: first you hear the tonic as a reference, then another chord. Telling whether it is the IV, the V or the vi lets you recognise whole progressions, because most popular songs are built from those degrees.
    • Level 4, exact chord challenge: without a reference, telling a C from a G takes a lot of practice. Use it as a challenge once the other levels feel easy.

  2. A 10-minute routine

    • 2 minutes: on your guitar, alternate slowly between a major chord and its minor (C and Cm, A and Am). Sing the third of each.
    • 4 minutes: answer level 1 or 2 until you get ten correct in a row. If you miss one, listen again before moving on.
    • 3 minutes: level 3. Before answering, sing the tonic in your head and ask whether the new chord wants to return to it (V) or moves away calmly (IV).
    • 1 minute: check your accuracy. When it stays above 80 % for three days, move up a level.

  3. Why short daily practice works

    The ear improves with short, frequent repetitions more than with long, occasional sessions. That is why the trainer keeps your streak of consecutive days: ten minutes a day for a month does more than two hours on a single day.

    Your progress is stored only in this browser; you do not need an account.

    Once you confidently recognize the scale degrees, try to figure out the progression of a song you know by ear. First, identify the tonic.

    Then, look for the chord that creates the most tension, usually the V. Complete the rest by comparing what you hear with CifraLab's harmonic circles.

Check yourself

Listen to both: which one sounds major?