Synesthesia. Anyone have it?

[D M C]

Does any TBer have it?

The accompanist for our church choir has it, and it just seems remarkably weird to me. She can tell if we flat while singing a cappella by the change in the key signature's color.

If you have it, does it give you perfect pitch? Do the colors remain the same regardless of octave (sometimes if I'm playing in Eb, I'll sneak in a open E at the bottom end as a grace note - it's really hard to tell?) Do subdivisions of whole tones have a blend of the color of the bracketing notes?

Too much to ponder.

Edit: Don't know if this qualifies as off topic, but it is more physiological than musical, isn't it?

 

[BigDanT]

Yep. It's in my family. It's funny I had no idea it was a "thing" until a few years ago. Mine has nothing to do with perfect pitch it's more color related. My mind assigns colors to certain things like numbers or letters or even moods. I never thought it was unusual until I found out not everyone did that.

 

[hondo4life]

I can't even say for sure if I have synesthesia. How do "normal" people remember things?
Pitches are not certain colors/flavors/other sensations to me, but specific melodies definitely are.

 

[LiquidMidnight]

I have synesthesia, though I'm not blessed (or cursed?) with perfect pitch. I associate the following notes and colors:

C = Blue
D = Brown
E = Black or Grey
F = Yellow
G = Dark Green
A = Red
B = Light Green

Sharps and flats generally reflect different shades of their related naturals, regardless of enharmonics.

 

[hondo4life]

Oh yeah, C is definitely blue, but E is red and A is yellow. omg

 

[48thStreetCustom]

Yes I have it where I see colors with words. It's something I can ignore or pay attention to, like the sound of a refrigerator in the next room.

 

[Gaolee]

I am completely devoid of any interesting traits like that. Oh, well.

 

[BadJazz]

I have something of a ASMR sense. I often fall asleep to a binaural recording of a haircut.

 

[D M C]

I have synesthesia, though I'm not blessed (or cursed?) with perfect pitch. I associate the following notes and colors:

C = Blue
D = Brown
E = Black or Grey
F = Yellow
G = Dark Green
A = Red
B = Light Green

Sharps and flats generally reflect different shades of their related naturals, regardless of enharmonics.

Do you only associate the color if you hear it, or can you do so by thinking or humming it to yourself? I don't know how this works. Do you see the color? I mean, color is visual, innit?

 

[Michael B]

Is this the kind of thing you can learn?

 

[line6man]

Yes I have it where I see colors with words. It's something I can ignore or pay attention to, like the sound of a refrigerator in the next room.

What happens when you try to do the Stroop test?

 

[Opdelibears]

When I was younger I associated numbers with colors, and sometimes tastes. For example, 5 is yellow, six is green, and seven is red. One of numbers tasted like pie to me...but I can't remember very well.


I guess years of public schooling really killed it for me.

 

[Sharknose79]

I am completely devoid of any interesting traits like that. Oh, well.

Me too.
But I like soda !!!

 

[48thStreetCustom]

What happens when you try to do the Stroop test?

Funny you say that. It overloads my brain. I'm mixing three different messages. Blue isn't blue. It's brown.

 

[hondo4life]

When I was younger I associated numbers with colors, and sometimes tastes. For example, 5 is yellow, six is green, and seven is red. One of numbers tasted like pie to me...but I can't remember very well.


I guess years of public schooling really killed it for me.

Yeah, public school totally dulled my mind by forcing it through that same institutionl mold. It is really disgusting. If it hadn't been for band, I would have been totally dead inside. By the way, six is maroon, and seven is green.

 

[two fingers]

I have synesthesia, though I'm not blessed (or cursed?) with perfect pitch. I associate the following notes and colors:

C = Blue
D = Brown
E = Black or Grey
F = Yellow
G = Dark Green
A = Red
B = Light Green

Sharps and flats generally reflect different shades of their related naturals, regardless of enharmonics.

All this time I have been wondering what the brown note was. Thank you for clearing that up finally!

 

[D M C]

It doesn't make any sense to me. The associations seem so random, like motor oil is tooth decay and spice racks are pineapples.

Do letters and numbers and notes put the idea of colors into your conscious mind, or do you actually see some manifestation of color - like a halo?

 

[hondo4life]

Oh, spice racks could totally be pineapples.

 

[mrpackerguy]

literally translated "sensation/sensitivity in your synthesizer"

 

[bassbrad]

I don't always experience synesthesia but do sometimes can visualize music in colors or textures, especially when meditatively listening to something classical like Messiaen, Holst and the like. Messiaen is famous French composer that had synesthesia. I can also at times zone out when playing and experience synesthesia.