Questions tagged [solfege]

For questions related to solfège, the music education method used to teach pitch and sight singing by connecting syllables ("Do," "Re," "Mi," etc.) to pitches.

Solfège is taught at every level of music education, from primary through graduate level university study. Many music education methods use solfège to teach pitch and sight-reading, most notably the Kodály Method.

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What is the relationship between "do re mi" and note letter names?

When people sing the song, they use do, re, mi, fa, sol, la, ti, (si), etc, but sometimes I hear that the music people say A, B, C, D flat, etc. Is there a relationship or are they two different things?
Ted Wong
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What are the Solfège names of the semitones between the basic do, re, mi, etc?

What are the names of all the notes in a sol-fa scale, especially the chromatic notes between the basic Do, Re, Mi's.
Bob de Bruin
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If you don't use Solfège, how do you read & memorize music-- what goes through your mind?

I learned solfège as a child, long before I started to learn the musical notes on 5 lines. So I'm used to matching every notes to its solfege equivalent in order to know which piano key to press and how to sing. In the U.S. musicians use C D E F G…
GrandAdagio
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Learning an alternative moving-do solfege -- futile?

Here's a fairly specific but multi-faceted question. I can only solfege (moving-do) in my head up to about Allegro 16ths at best, and I've been thinking if maybe there are ways to speed up. I noticed that I can solfege faster in a Japanese accent…
Rei Miyasaka
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What is this notation used for the singer?

Consider this excerpt from Te Deum Laudamus by C.V. Stanford: What is the notation used on top of the voice? I suppose the letters indicate the notes (d(o)-r(e)-m(i)-s(ol) for re-mi-fa#-la in D major), and the symbols relate to the rhythm?
Karlo
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Music created specifically for aural training

If I listen to a Mozart piano sonata, I am practically unable to comprehend what is happening musically. I'm talking about functional perception, hearing the function of each note or chord. Sometimes as a phrase comes to an end I can make out the…
P i
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In what order shall I introduce traditional music theory concepts to adults using solfege?

I have 24 sessions in which to deliver basic music theory to university-age students. Although they are likely to do some singing in their future careers, they are unlikely to receive further musical training apart from singing lessons. I was…
Mich Sampson
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Does movable do modulate with the music or stay with the initial key?

When using the movable do system in a piece that modulates, is the standard practice to stay with the initial key (i.e., a "locally fixed" do) or to modulate the solfege to match the new key? (Or is there even a standard practice in this regard?…
Aaron
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How is solfège approached when there is harmony in the background?

Instead of trying to memorize every interval out of context, a more useful ear training goal is the "memorization" of each scale degree in relation to the tonic (Movable-do solfege). Each degree will eventually produce a certain sensation. [The…
Allan Felipe
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Why is ra lower than re while la is higher than le?

According to Wikipedia and this answer, the solfège syllables for 2 and ♭2 are re and ra, respectively, while the solfège syllables for 6 and ♭6 are la and le, respectively. Is there a reason for this apparent inconsistency?
Sam Estep
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Solfege (aka Do Re Mi) in natural minor scale?

Is there a Do Re Mi Fa Sol La Ti Do equivalent in the minor scale? If so how's it spelled and how's it sung (maybe someone has a link where someone sings it). Thanks
user34288
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Are solfege systems octave-agnostic?

I'm writing a somewhat comprehensive music theory programming library - Both to have the ability to make "intelligent" theory programs, and to refresh all the theory to myself. I've however just met an obstacle that I can't seem to pass: Do solfege…
Saebekassebil
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Can tonic sol-fa cope with quarter tones?

Tonic sol-fa gives names to the seven scale degrees then modifies the vowel sound of note names to indicate semitone modifications. It handles enharmonic respellings, so for instance, do di re ri mi is enharmonically equivalent to do ra re me…
Brian THOMAS
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How do French and other Romance language speakers cope with the movable do system?

A user with perfect pitch reminded me that applying relative doremi will be torture like he had to read the word “green” in red letters. How can I develop relative pitch if I have perfect pitch? I must agree that I see this conflict in all languages…
Albrecht Hügli
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Are there solfege syllables for diminished and augmented imperfect intervals?

Sometimes it is necessary to name notes and intervals differently based on how they are functioning and I was curious if this idea caired over to solfege. For example, the notes of a Co7 are C, Eb, Gb, and Bbb. The C would be Do, the Eb would be Me,…
Dom
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