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Sound, pitch and note names

First, separate high vs low, tone colour and loudness.

Pitch isn't timbre

For pitched sounds, the fundamental frequency is closely tied to pitch, while overtones, attack and decay shape the timbre. The same note can come from a piano, a guitar or a voice. Louder isn't higher, and a brighter sound isn't necessarily a higher one.

Octaves and semitones

Modern twelve-tone equal temperament divides the octave into 12 equal semitones: each semitone up multiplies the frequency by 2^(1/12), and an octave up doubles it. A4 is commonly 440 Hz, and A5 an octave above is 880 Hz. This is a pitch reference — you don't need to memorise frequencies to answer questions.

Note names and octave numbers

The natural note names are C, D, E, F, G, A, B. C4 usually means middle C, MIDI note 60 here; A4 is 69. Some software numbers octaves differently while the actual pitch is the same — when comparing, go by the MIDI number or frequency.

In practice

A scale degree keeps its function at a different dynamic or register. When you practise, try to recognise how a note relates to the tonic — don't just memorise the sound of one piano sample.

References: Functional Ear Trainer · Miles.be · Puget Sound · Music Theory for the 21st-Century Classroom · musictheory.net · Lessons