· Memory · Original
Sound Sequence: free melody memory game to train your ear
Four tones, four colours. Listen, then play the melody back. One more note every round.
What is Sound Sequence?
Four pads, four soft tones from low to high. Listen to the melody with the pads dark, then play it back. Every round you clear adds one more note. No sound, or hard of hearing? Visual mode lights the pads as they play.
Sound Sequence is a free memory game for your ears. Four pads play four soft tones, from low to high. A short melody plays while the pads stay dark, so you have to hold it by sound alone. Then you play it back on the pads. Get it right and the same melody returns with one more note on the end.
Muted phone, noisy room, or hard of hearing? Switch on Visual mode and the pads light up as the melody plays; notes then score 1 point instead of 2. Keys 1 to 4 press the pads, and a miss plays the same melody again so you can listen for the note you lost.
At a glance
- Category
- Memory
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Play time
- 2–4 min
- Price
- Free, in your browser, sign-up optional
How to play
- Listen
- The melody plays with the pads dark: you only hear it. Pad 1 is the lowest tone, pad 4 the highest.
- Play it back
- Tap the pads in the same order, or press 1 to 4. Each pad lights and sounds as you press it. Clear it and the same melody comes back one note longer.
- Lives
- A wrong pad costs one of 3 lives and plays the same melody again. Visual mode lights the pads during playback, for muted devices or hard-of-hearing players.
- Score
- Every note of every melody you clear scores 2 points in Listen mode, 1 in Visual mode.
Scoring
Every note of every melody you play back correctly scores 2 points in Listen mode (pads dark) and 1 point in Visual mode (pads lit during playback).
Each round adds one note and plays a little faster, up to 20 notes. A wrong pad costs one of 3 lives and plays the same melody again. Your best score is kept in this browser.
What it trains
- Auditory working memory
- Holding a melody by ear and playing it back in order.
- Pitch discrimination
- Telling four close tones apart, from low to high.
- Listening focus
- Following every note when there's nothing to watch.
Strategy and tips
- Learn the four tones first
- Use the tutorial pads: 1 is the lowest, 4 the highest. Knowing them by ear makes everything easier.
- Follow the shape
- Hear the melody as up, down, same: "up, up, down" is easier to hold than four separate notes.
- Hum it back
- Humming or singing the melody in your head keeps it alive while you press the pads.
- Only the end is new
- Each round repeats the last melody plus one note, so listen hardest to the last note.
- Use the miss
- A miss plays the same melody again: listen for the spot where you went wrong.
Why play Sound Sequence?
Holding a sequence of sounds in mind, then reproducing it, uses auditory working memory: the same skill you use to remember a phone number someone reads out, follow spoken directions or pick up a tune. Adding one note a round keeps you right at the edge of your span.
Frequently asked questions
Is Sound Sequence free?
Yes. It is free and runs in your browser, with no download. Signing up is optional.
Can I play with the sound off?
Yes. Turn on Visual mode: the pads light up during playback, and each note scores 1 point instead of 2.
How is it different from Pattern Recall?
Pattern Recall is about watching lights. Sound Sequence is about listening: in the default mode the pads stay dark while the melody plays.
Can I use the keyboard?
Yes: keys 1 to 4 press the pads, from the lowest tone to the highest.