Tools for Every Guitarist:

How to Learn Songs by Ear

 

Start the Course!

 

Do you trust me?

Actually, that's not important right now. Right now, I just need to ask you a few leading questions:

Have you ever wanted to learn a song, only to discover there were no tabs, no lesson videos, and no chord charts anywhere online? Or maybe you've spent 20 minutes searching for the "correct" tab, only to discover there are 17 different versions and they're all wrong?

Do you wish you could hear a song and immediately start figuring it out for yourself instead of waiting for someone else to explain it? But you feel like musicians who can learn songs by ear possess some kind of mysterious superpower that you'll never have?

Do you want a practical, real-world approach that works for guitarists who just want to figure out music they love? 

Do you secretly suspect that learning songs by ear might be one of the most valuable musical skills you could possibly develop? But deep down do you consider that ear training abilities won't necessarily make you truly happy and satisfied in your interpersonal relationships? 

 

If you answered "yes" to all/most/some/one of these questions, that sounds like a skill issue it might be time for you to join me on the path to ear training mastery. 

When I first started playing music, I had a friend who could hear a song once and immediately play it. Sometimes he'd start playing along before the song was even over. Meanwhile, I couldn't struggled to figure out the first note.

So I did what most guitarists do: I relied on tabs.And tabs are great—I learned hundreds of songs that way. But over time I noticed that the musicians I admired most weren't constantly looking things up. They could just figure things out.

The more I got into music, the more I realized this wasn't some magical talent. It was a skill.

So I worked on it. Hard. And for years... I got nowhere.

Then I finally stumbled upon the truth: The problem wasn't that my ears were bad. The problem was that I was trying to hear everything. I thought learning songs by ear meant identifying every note and chord instantly. But great musicians aren't hearing everything—they're hearing the important things. They know what to listen for, and what they can ignore.

Today I learn at least four new songs every week entirely by ear. Chords, melodies, riffs, bass lines, solos—whatever I need to learn, I can usually figure it out because I know how to listen for the clues that matter.

And that's exactly what I want to teach you. My goal is simple: help you hear a song you love and figure it out for yourself. It's one of the most useful skills you'll ever develop as a musician, and it improves every aspect of your playing.

Now it's time for you to trust me.

(Also, yes, you're still playing music if you aren't playing by ear. I was just being combative to sound confident.)

START THE COURSE!
INTRODUCING

HOW TO LEARN SONGS BY EAR

Why Ear Training Matters

 

It makes you independent

When you can learn songs by ear, you're no longer dependent on tabs, chord charts, lesson videos, or somebody else doing the work for you. If you hear a song you love, you can start figuring it out immediately.

It dramatically improves your musicianship

Learning songs by ear trains you to hear chord progressions, melodies, rhythms, song forms, and musical patterns. Instead of just playing notes, you start understanding what's actually happening in the music.

It makes learning and memorizing songs easier

When you learn by ear, you're not just memorizing finger movements—you're learning sounds and musical relationships. As a result, songs tend to stick in your memory much longer and make more sense when you revisit them.

It improves your improvisation

Improvisation becomes much easier when your ears know where the music is going. The better you get at recognizing sounds, the easier it becomes to hear ideas in your head and play them on your instrument.

It teaches practical music theory

Learning songs by ear naturally teaches you about keys, intervals, chord function, common progressions, and song structure. Instead of learning theory as a collection of rules, you learn it through real music.

It changes how you listen to music

This might be the biggest benefit of all. Once you start learning songs by ear, music stops sounding like a wall of sound. You begin to hear the individual pieces, recognize familiar patterns, and understand how songs are put together.

And once that happens, you'll never listen to music the same way again.

The ability to learn songs by ear isn't reserved for musical geniuses.

It's a learnable skill.

And if I can learn it, there's a very good chance you can too.

ENROLL NOW

This Course Is For You If You...

  • Have always wanted to learn songs by ear, but have no idea where to start.
  • Feel completely dependent on tabs, chord charts, and YouTube tutorials.
  • Can play songs on guitar, but struggle to figure them out for yourself.
  • Want to stop guessing and start understanding what you're hearing.
  • Have tried ear training before, but got stuck identifying random intervals and never learned how to apply it to actual music.
  • Get frustrated when there are no tabs available for a song you want to learn.
  • Would like to learn songs faster, memorize them more easily, and become a more independent musician.
  • Want a practical, step-by-step system for figuring out chords, riffs, melodies, and entire songs by ear.
  • Would love for someone to walk you through the process instead of telling you to "just use your ears."
  • Secretly suspect that learning songs by ear is one of the most important musical skills you could develop.
YES, THAT'S ME!

What's Included...

CORE LESSONS MODULE

Ear Training (12 Lessons)

A step-by-step guide to the fundamentals of ear training, including:

  • Finding the key, root movement, and tonality. 

  • Identifying melody using solfège and scale knowledge. 

  • Hearing and identifying chord changes based on function. 

  • User-friendly music theory to understand how it all fits together.

  • Understanding song form.
2 ADDITIONAL MODULES

"ACTUALLY LEARNING SONGS" and "WHAT ARE WE DOING HEAR?"

In addition to guiding you on how to practice and process this course, these modules provide real-world examples and plenty of motivation, tips, and extra resources. 

  • Watch and learn as Stuart learns 2 songs in real time.

  • "Learn Any Song in 12 Steps" System.

  • The Philosophy of Playing by Ear 

  • How to Cheat (at playing by ear) 
PRACTICE EXERCISES

UNCLE STUART'S JAZZ FAKEBOOK

Practice makes perfect, so get to work! 

  • Drills for chord progressions, melodies, internals, and more!

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

PRINTABLE HANDOUTS 

These handouts provide quick reference and guidance for important concepts and exercises.

  • Scale and chord reference charts 
  • Note name reference 
  • Helpful external resources list 
Buy Now!
uPeople of the World, Friends and Relatives, 

My name is Stuart Alexander Lehman-Brown 

...and I have a complicated relationship with learning songs by ear. I have a complicated relationship with most things.

After earning a Bachelor of Music in Contemporary Writing and Production from Berklee College of Music, I settled in the San Francisco Bay Area, where I've performed with bands, recorded and produced multiple albums, and taught over 50,000 lessons.

Now I'm living my best life teaching guitar, learning songs the hard way so you don't have to, walking my dogs, and playing Elden Ring Diablo IV Sudoku. 

SIGN UP TODAY!

Tools for Every Guitarist:

How to Learn Songs by Ear

We'll Start Simple. We'll Build Together.

You don’t need perfect technique.
You don’t need to “be disciplined.”
You just need to show up—and play with me.

ENROLL NOW!
14-DAY MONEY-BACK GUARANTEE

If you aren’t completely satisfied with Tools for Every Guitarist: How to Learn Songs by Ear, let us know within the first 14-days for a full refund. No questions asked.