play by ear
Skip the score
To play by ear is to play music without reading from a score, relying on memory and the ability to hear and reproduce notes.
The figurative sense dominates: to proceed without a fixed plan, adapting to circumstances as they develop.
We don't have an agenda—let's just play it by ear.
improvisation
Act without preparation
- ad-libUnscripted speech or remark
- extemporizeSpeak without preparation
- jam sessionInformal improvisational music gathering
- freestyleWithout prescribed technique
unrehearsed · unscripted · spontaneous · off-the-cuff · on-the-fly · make it up · go with the flow · think on your feet
wing it
Act without preparation
- ad-libUnscripted speech or remark
- extemporizeSpeak without preparation
- jam sessionInformal improvisational music gathering
freestyle · unrehearsed · unscripted · spontaneous · off-the-cuff · on-the-fly · make it up · go with the flow · think on your feet · spur of the moment
- improvisationimprovised, impromptu, ad lib, freestyle, ad-lib
- music expressionsmusic to my ears, in tune, out of tune, strike a chord, call the tune
- adaptabilityadapt, flexibility, resilience, adaptability, pliability
- earearlobe, eardrum, pinna, cochlea, helix
- performingperform, sing, act, dance, rehearse