The teaching of singing relies on language alone; we cannot instruct technique or musical accuracy by fixing finger placement on keys or hand position, as in the case of other instruments. Therefore, the training must elicit the desired response without direct sight or manipulation of the instrument.

This study explores teaching protocols with self-classified "tone-deaf" adults (non-amusic) to find what is most helpful to teachers and students when working on developing pitch-matching accuracy. Four instructional approaches to pitch-matching accuracy training are described and compared: (1) auditory awareness training of the goal pitch, (2) sensory/proprioceptive awareness training of the vocal mechanism itself, (3) visual awareness training of the goal pitch, and (4) neutral instruction for regular musical exposure and singing practice. Data include sung responses to recorded patterns and songs, a pitch perception measure, a musical background questionnaire, a post survey, and investigator lesson journals. Between testing sessions, participants received eight individual 30-minute lessons in one of these four instructional methods. A fifth group served as a control group which received no instruction until after the post-test. Results provide pedagogical tools for improving pitch accuracy as well as insight into the students' development process. The study also offers some comparative observations on the various teaching protocols' relative effectiveness.