Tone Safe is a game that helps you to hear the differences between notes, intervals, and chords.  It trains your ear to hear those differences, making it easier to discern details about a particular piece of music.  All too often, a chord or an interval are presented in the context of a musical composition.  This makes it difficult for the average listener to determine what kind of interval or chord it was because, to do that, the listener must pull the chord or interval out of the musical context in which it was first heard.  Tone Safe pulls those intervals out of any musical context and challenges the player to match what he or she hears.

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Warning:  Tone Safe is a game that makes sounds.  Sometimes the sounds it makes are beautiful.  However, sometimes the sounds it makes are extremely jarring and discordant.  It is recommended that you play the game in a quiet environment so you can hear the sounds it makes without distractions.  Also the people around you will appreciate it if you use headphones.

At its heart, Tone Safe is a matching game.  One or more sounds are played and you must turn the rings on the screen to match the sounds that were played.  When the sounds match, you tap the "Safe Handle" and the door will open.

The screenshot above displays the game board with three rings visible.  You touch one of the rings on the display, and rotate it to change the note under the pointer. Also notice the small gear outside the rings.  This is the timer, which will travel at different rates as you progress through the game.  If the timer gear reaches the top of the circle, the game is lost. 

In the early levels there will only be one ring displayed.  The goal is to match the single note that is played.  When two rings are displayed the goal will be to match the two notes, or the interval, played.  When three rings are displayed the goal will be to match the three notes, or the chord, played.

When you touch the handle and the rings are not in the correct position, the handle will move a short distance and replay the goal.  When the notes match to goal touch the handle.  The door will open displaying your current score.  Touch the screen again to move on to the next level.

Every five levels a new note, interval, or chord will be added to the sequence to guess.  The screenshot above shows a three chord sequence.  There can be up to five notes is a sequence.  You try to match the first note or interval or chord in the sequence and then you tap the handle.  If you are correct, a ball will appear in the cutout in the handle plate and the plate will rotate to the next cutout position.  When all the cutout positions are filled, the door will open.  Once you've completed the five note sequence, the plate resets and another ring is added.  There can be as many as three rings.

As each level is completed, a gear is added in the lower left of the screen.  After five gears, Tone Safe adds another ring.

A level is scored based on the time remaining when the level is completed.  The more time remaining, the higher score is added to your score.  If time runs out then the total level score is subtracted from your score.

For the first five levels the game presents a single ring.  The object is to guess the target sound by matching the sounds in the ring.  When you match the target sound, tap the handle and the door will open.

Notes are labeled as they are on a piano keyboard with the white keys representing the 7 "natural" notes labeled "A" through "G".  When the notes reach the 8th note the counting starts over again and we call the next sequence from "A" to "G" a higher "octave".  The following diagram shows the notes starting from "C" and going up to the next occurrence of "C" (the next octave of "C").

The black keys are called the "accidental" keys (Probably because when frst starting out playing the piano you tend to hit them by accident).  There are actually two designations for each of these notes.  As a "sharp" note the key takes the label of the white key to its immediate left.  So, for example, the black key to the right of the "C" key is labeled "C sharp" or "C#".  However, as a "flat" note the key takes the label of the white key to its immediate right.  So, the black key immediately to the left of the "D" key is the "D flat" or "Db" key.  Note that the "C#" key and the "Db" key are actually the same physical key.

For the next 5 levels (levels 6-10), the game will play two notes in sequence.  The object is to match the first note and tap the handle.  A ball will appear in the plate cutout and the plate will rotate to the next cutout.  Now you must match the second note.  If you are successful, then a ball will appear in the second cutout, the handle will turn, and the door will open.  If you are incorrect, the cutouts will reset and the rings will rotate back to their original position and you must start over again. 

Levels 11-15 will require you to match a three note sequence.  Levels 16-20 will require four notes, and Levels 21-25 will require a five note sequence. 

Be aware of the timer gear!  It goes faster for each level stacked.  For example in level 1 the timer will move pretty slow.  However, on level 5 the timer moves very fast.

Tone Safe can display intervals even wider than an octave.  Intervals beyond the octave continue counting from eight.  These intervals are similar to their counterparts closer together.  For example, the interval from "D" to "E" is a Major 2nd.  If you increase the pitch of "E" by one octave it is called a Major 9th.  The next "F" up would be a Minor 10th.  The next "G" is an 11th and the next "A" up from that is a "12th".  While "D" to "B" is a Major 6th, if you raise "B" by one octave the interval becomes a Major 13th, and the "C" above that would make the interval a 14th.  Note that the "G#" in between the 11th and 12th is called an "Octave Tritone.  Tone Safe will create intervals in a two octave range.

The notes can be matched in any order.  Tip: Try and match the individual sounds to the sound the handle makes when it is tapped.  Listen to the target interval by tapping the handle.  Try and hear the lowest sound it makes and move one of the rings to match that sound.  Then tap the handle again and listen for the highest sound in the interval makes.  Then try and match the other ring to the highest note in the interval.  If you are correct the door will open.  If you are incorrect, Simply try again.

Be aware that the note you are trying to match may not be in the ring.  The ring may play the note just above the note you are trying to match, and the next note down may be just below the note you are trying to match.  If that is the case the note will be on the other ring.

When you reach Level 31 the game will present you with a sequence of two intervals.  At this time you must match the first interval, and then tap the handle.  If you are correct the ball will appear and the plate will turn to the next cutout.  Then you must match the second interval.  When all the cutouts are filled, the handle will turn the and door will open.

After you've played the fifth stack for the levels with a sequence of five notes, the game presents two rings to match.  The plate returns to a single cutout.  The object at this point is to match the single pair of notes.  This is called an interval.  If you picture the notes as keys on a piano, then the number of keys between the notes is the measure of the interval.  The following table describes the names used to describe the intervals.

0 (keys are right next to each other

Minor 2nd

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

Major 2nd

Minor 3rd

Major 3rd

Perfect 4th

Tritone

Perfect 5th

Minor 6th

Major 6th

Minor 7th

Major 7th

Octave

After you've completed the fifth sequence of five intervals you are presented with three rings to match.  The plate returns to a single cutout and you must begin the sequence again, only this time you must match three notes played simultaneously.  When the notes are played in sequential thirds it is the basic form a chord.  The object of the game at this point is to match the three notes played by turning the three rings to the correct position.  The order of the notes does not matter. 

Tip:  To play all three notes at the current position of the rings tap the cap at the center of the rings.  When you tap near the edge of a ring, both rings will depress. 

Tone Safe will only present the four basic kinds of chords.  Major chords, Minor chords, Diminished Chords and Augmented chords.  Since there are three notes in a chord, there are two intervals between the notes of a chord.  These intervals are given in some form of third.  As you may remember from the table in the section above, there are two different "3rd" intervals.  They are the "Minor 3rd", in which there are two keys in between the two notes, and the "Major 3rd", in which there are three keys in between the two notes.

In the normal form of a chord each interval is either a Minor 3rd or a Major 3rd.  This gives us four possible outcomes.  The following table describes the possibilities and the type of chord formed.

The notes can be matched in any order.  Tip: Tap the cap at the center of the rings to play all three rings at once.  Try and match the individual sounds to the sound the handle makes when it is tapped.  Listen to the target chord by tapping the handle.  Try and hear the lowest sound it makes and move one of the rings to match that sound.  Then tap the handle again and listen for the highest sound in the chord makes.  Then try and match another ring to the highest note in the interval.  Then listen to the cord and turn the remaining ring so that the chord is matched.  If you are correct, the ball will appear, the handle will turn, and the door will open.  If you are incorrect, you will not be penalized by having everything reset.  Simply try again.

Highest Note

Middle Note

Lowest Note

minor 3rd

minor 3rd

Highest Note

Middle Note

Lowest Note

Major 3rd

minor 3rd

Highest Note

Middle Note

Lowest Note

minor 3rd

Major 3rd

Highest Note

Middle Note

Lowest Note

Major 3rd

Major 3rd

Diminished Chord

Minor Chord

Major Chord

Augmented Chord

As you progress through the levels from here you will be presented with first two chords in sequence (Levels 56-60), and then three chords in sequence (Levels 61-65), a sequence of four cords (Levels 66-70), and finally a sequence of five chords (Levels 71-75).  It will become difficult to listen to chords at the beginning or in the middle of a sequence.  Tip: When playing a sequence, and it reaches the chord you are trying to match, tap one of the rings before the next note in the sequence is played.  Tapping a ring will cause the sequence to stop playing, allowing your ear memory to stay "tuned" to the chord you are trying to match.

Tapping the small white gear in the lower right side of the screen will revolve the game screen and display the settings panel.

In this section you can set the level at which you wish to play the game.  There are two multiple choice controls in this section.  The top control has the names of the major levels and sets the level by multiples of twenty five.  Setting the Experience Level to "Apprentice" sets the game level to 0.  Setting "Musician" sets the game level to 26, "Teacher" sets the game level to 51 and "Master" sets the level to 76.  The following table illustrates the game state as set by each of these settings

The Show Notes control provides help by displaying a little heads up box above the ring that is being rotated.  This box will show the note that the current ring position is playing.  This is a useful tool to use when trying to develop that perfect pitch since it will associate a particular pitch with a label.

Below the major level settings are the minor settings.  This control adjusts the game level by multiples of five, which corresponds to the points at which a new ball plate is added and the goal sequence increases.  The labels are self explanatory.  Setting the experience level to "3 Balls", for example, will increase the game level set by the upper choice control by fifteen.  You must then get three balls in three cutouts before the door will open.

Apprentice

This sets the game level to the earliest version of the game.  Only one ring is visible and the object is to match single notes.

Musician

This sets the game level to the middle version of the game.  Two rings are visible and the object is to match intervals (two notes played together).

Teacher

This sets the game level to the high version of the game.  Three rings are visible and the object is to match chords (three notes played together).

Master

This sets the game level above that of Teacher.  First two Rings are made visible and intervals are required just like at the Musician Level.  However in Master level, whenever you tap the handle, your game is reset.    The Master level also includes three rings like in the Teacher level with the same restriction that when you tap the handle the game is reset.

If you get truly lost, you can set the "Show Correct" tool.  As with "Show Notes", "Show Correct" will cause a heads up box to be displayed showing the note for the ring that is being used.  However, if the ring is rotated to the current goal position, then the note will display as green.  Since this setting will cause the game to reveal its secrets, it is intended solely to provide a tutorial mode for familiarizing the user with the sounds.  So, when "Show Correct" is "On", you cannot increase your score.

Set "New Game" to "On" to reset your score to 0 and begin the game at level 0.

Set "Reset High Score" to "On" to reset the high shore to 0.