Which songs start with a perfect 4th?

Going up: Amazing Grace, Auld Lang Syne, and We Wish You a Merry Christmas. Going down: How Far I'll Go, Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, and Tetris (Korobeiniki).

Which songs start with a perfect 5th?

Going up: Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star, Scarborough Fair, and Can't Help Falling in Love. Going down: Flintstones (theme), Feelings, and The Chicken Dance.

Which songs start with a tritone?

Going up: Maria (West Side Story), Purple Haze, and The Simpsons (theme). Going down: Black Sabbath, YYZ, and Blue Seven.

Which songs start with a minor 6th?

Going up: In My Life, Go Down Moses, and Believer. Going down: Call Me Maybe (chorus), Black Orpheus (Manhã de Carnaval), and Love Story (theme).

Which songs start with a major 6th?

Going up: My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean, Dashing Through the Snow (Jingle Bells), and It Came Upon a Midnight Clear. Going down: Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen, Over There, and Man in the Mirror (chorus).

Which songs start with a minor 7th?

Going up: Somewhere (West Side Story), The Winner Takes It All, and Star Trek (theme). Going down: An American in Paris and Watermelon Man.

Which songs start with a major 7th?

Going up: Take On Me, Bali Ha'i (South Pacific), and Superman (theme). Going down: Don't Know Why and I Love You.

Why does the direction of the interval matter?

A fourth going up and a fourth going down cover the same distance but sound quite different, and ear-training tests play both. Learn one song for each direction. The Up and Down filters above show only the songs that go the way you're practising.

How do I actually memorise these intervals?

Listen to each song's opening, hum it back, then sing the interval name out loud. Repeat over a week. After about 20 reps you'll recognise the interval by ear before the song name even comes to mind.

What if I don't know one of the songs?

Pick any song you do know that starts with the same interval. The mnemonic only works if it's instantly recognisable to you, so switch the language filter to your own and use whatever you know cold.

Is there an interactive trainer?

Yes, the Interval Finder plays random intervals and asks you to identify them by ear. Start there for active practice and use this chart as a reference whenever you blank on one.

Interval Song Chart

A song you already know for every interval, from a repeated note up to an octave, going up and going down. English, Polish and Spanish songs plus film themes and classical pieces. Tap a song to hear its first two notes.

190 songs for 13 intervals

Showing 190 of 190 songs

Unison (P1)

P1, 0 semitones

Minor 2nd

m2, 1 semitone, 7 up, 11 down

Major 2nd

M2, 2 semitones, 14 up, 9 down

Minor 3rd

m3, 3 semitones, 9 up, 10 down

Major 3rd

M3, 4 semitones, 9 up, 7 down

Perfect 4th

P4, 5 semitones, 20 up, 6 down

Tritone

TT, 6 semitones, 3 up, 4 down

Perfect 5th

P5, 7 semitones, 10 up, 5 down

Minor 6th

m6, 8 semitones, 8 up, 3 down

Major 6th

M6, 9 semitones, 10 up, 5 down

Minor 7th

m7, 10 semitones, 5 up, 2 down

Major 7th

M7, 11 semitones, 3 up, 2 down

Octave

P8, 12 semitones, 11 up, 2 down

Interval song cheat sheet

One song going up and one going down for every interval. Songs in your language come first; tap a title to jump to its full list and hear it.

Interval song cheat sheet
Interval	Semitones	Going up	Going down
Unison (P1)	0	Jingle Bells (chorus)
Minor 2ndm2	1	White Christmas	Stormy Weather
Major 2ndM2	2	Happy Birthday	Mary Had a Little Lamb
Minor 3rdm3	3	Greensleeves	Star Spangled Banner
Major 3rdM3	4	When the Saints Go Marching In	Summertime
Perfect 4thP4	5	Amazing Grace	How Far I'll Go
TritoneTT	6	Maria (West Side Story)	Black Sabbath
Perfect 5thP5	7	Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star	Flintstones (theme)
Minor 6thm6	8	In My Life	Call Me Maybe (chorus)
Major 6thM6	9	My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean	Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen
Minor 7thm7	10	Somewhere (West Side Story)	An American in Paris
Major 7thM7	11	Take On Me	Don't Know Why
OctaveP8	12	Somewhere Over the Rainbow	Willow Weep for Me

How to use this chart

Pick an interval, press play and hum the song that starts the same way. An arrow up means the song's second note is higher than the first, an arrow down means it falls. Every card plays both directions, because an interval you only recognise going up is half learned.

The chart is a reference. To test yourself, open the Interval Finder, which plays two notes and asks you to name the gap, or the interval ear training course, which starts with the easy ones and saves your progress.

Each song was checked against published interval tables, and the newer ones against the sheet music as well, so a song only sits under the interval its opening really makes. When the part everyone knows is the chorus rather than the first line, the title says so.

Want the method behind it? Read how to memorise every interval with a song.

Frequently asked questions

Which songs start with a perfect 4th?: Going up: Amazing Grace, Auld Lang Syne, and We Wish You a Merry Christmas. Going down: How Far I'll Go, Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, and Tetris (Korobeiniki).
Which songs start with a perfect 5th?: Going up: Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star, Scarborough Fair, and Can't Help Falling in Love. Going down: Flintstones (theme), Feelings, and The Chicken Dance.
Which songs start with a tritone?: Going up: Maria (West Side Story), Purple Haze, and The Simpsons (theme). Going down: Black Sabbath, YYZ, and Blue Seven.
Which songs start with a minor 6th?: Going up: In My Life, Go Down Moses, and Believer. Going down: Call Me Maybe (chorus), Black Orpheus (Manhã de Carnaval), and Love Story (theme).
Which songs start with a major 6th?: Going up: My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean, Dashing Through the Snow (Jingle Bells), and It Came Upon a Midnight Clear. Going down: Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen, Over There, and Man in the Mirror (chorus).
Which songs start with a minor 7th?: Going up: Somewhere (West Side Story), The Winner Takes It All, and Star Trek (theme). Going down: An American in Paris and Watermelon Man.
Which songs start with a major 7th?: Going up: Take On Me, Bali Ha'i (South Pacific), and Superman (theme). Going down: Don't Know Why and I Love You.
Why does the direction of the interval matter?: A fourth going up and a fourth going down cover the same distance but sound quite different, and ear-training tests play both. Learn one song for each direction. The Up and Down filters above show only the songs that go the way you're practising.
How do I actually memorise these intervals?: Listen to each song's opening, hum it back, then sing the interval name out loud. Repeat over a week. After about 20 reps you'll recognise the interval by ear before the song name even comes to mind.
What if I don't know one of the songs?: Pick any song you do know that starts with the same interval. The mnemonic only works if it's instantly recognisable to you, so switch the language filter to your own and use whatever you know cold.
Is there an interactive trainer?: Yes, the Interval Finder plays random intervals and asks you to identify them by ear. Start there for active practice and use this chart as a reference whenever you blank on one.