Doe a Deer
Doe, a deer, a female deer. Ray, a drop of golden sun. Me, a name, I call myself. Far, a long long way to run!!!
Wait a minute, why do I recognize this? The words you just read come from Rogers and Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music. Maria sings this song to the Von Trapp children using solfege to teach them how to sing.
What is Solfege?
Solfege, also called sol-fa or solfeggio, is an educational method used to teach ear training, pitch recognition and sight reading. Solfege is a form of solmization, a system where each note of the musical scale is given a distinct syllable. There are a number of different solmization forms throughout the world however Solfege is the most common in countries of Western culture.
I should also mention that there are two different ways of using solfege.
Fixed Do - Where the syllables are always connected to specific pitches (e.g. “C” is always “do”)
Movable Do- Where the syllables are assigned to scales degrees which are relative to the key that you’re in
(e.g. “do” is always the first scale degree in a scale, so in G major “G” would be “do”)
We will be using the latter method as it’s the one used in Germanic and Commonwealth Countries as well as the United States. I also believe that as a singer it is more practical as it allows us to understand the context of the pitches relative to the key we are in. I’m sure fixed do has it’s advantages as well. Some people even claim that fixed do can better train one to have perfect or absolute pitch. Movable do is what I was taught at University and continue to use to this day. I find it particularly helpful if I am singing in a choral setting as I can immediately identify which part of the harmony my part is.
How do I learn to use Solfege?
There are a number of ways to get started using solfege. The first of which is to learn the different syllables.
Below is a chart with the different syllables as well as hand symbols. The hand symbols are by no means necessary but some people find them to be helpful when learning, especially younger students. Start at the bottom and read the different syllables going up and then back down.
Let’s hear how it sounds
Here’s what it looks like on the staff in C Major
Try singing along with the music and the syllables
Congratulations! You’ve just sung your very first solfege scale. How did it feel? Was it familiar? Was it completely new? Whatever it was, you’ve now begun your journey to learning solfege.
Many of my students know that I like to incorporate solfege and sightsinging into weekly lessons. I believe it’s an important part of being a singer and musician. I’m also a big ear training nerd and love doing it.
The scale you just sang is the first exercise in my Solfege Exercises package. Notice that these exercises are in the key of C Major. This is simplest to begin as there are no sharps or flats. If you’re curious to learn more about Key Signatures check out my previous blog post, “The Key of Awesome”. Just remember since we are using movable do that solfege will be relative to the scale degrees of the key that we are in. So just don’t get too attached to how they look in the music as that will be subject to change in the future once we move past C Major.
In addition to the exercises I’ve also created practice tracks to go along with each exercise. Feel free to listen to these tracks as you’re learning and practicing. I’ve recorded them with the voice more focused on the left speaker and the piano on the right. So if you are listening with headphones you can listen with voice (left ear), with piano (right ear) or both. If you are playing this through a speaker it will be both piano and voice. Enjoy!
So what can I do with Solfege?
There are many practical applications for solfege. You’re essentially translating the pitches into a new language which will enhance your ability to recognize pitches. In doing so you’re also going to improve your sightreading (the process of singing something through in one try by simply looking at the music). You could try practicing this by taking a familiar song and seeing if you can sing it in solfege. How about “Mary Had a Little Lamb”. I’ll give you a hint, it starts on Mi. Mi Re Do Re Mi Mi Mi. You could essentially translate any song into solfege. It’s sometimes helpful if you have the sheet music but by no means is it necessary. I have my students practice sight reading and solfege using the method book “Sightsinging for Success” by Joan B. Heels. It’s filled with short excerpts of music where the goal is to sing an excerpt in one try with the correct syllables and pitches. This may sound daunting but it starts out fairly simple and gets harder as you progress. Why not pick up a piece of music and see if you can sing it using solfege.
Try it yourself!
Use the Solfege Scale C Major track to give you your starting note (hint, the starting note is C and is do). Then take at least thirty seconds to a minute of time to silently go over the music in your head.
A reminder that solfege is a tool that helps us to better recognize what the pitches sound like. The fascinating thing about singing is that we actually have to hear the pitch in our head before we can sing it. So when someone tells me that they are tone deaf that simply is not true. Nobody is tone deaf per se but how could you expect yourself to be a master at something that you’ve never had the chance to practice. Moreover, it’s possible that this person had someone tell them that they were tone deaf so they bought that point of view and never sang again. It breaks my heart to hear these stories. Everyone has the ability to hear a pitch in their head. I actually think of this as our superpower. It really depends on how much exposure they’ve had to music and whether or not they’ve consciously practiced recognizing different pitches. Solfege is a way for us to practice this skill.
On a piano all of the keys are laid out in front of you. When the keys are pressed a hammer strikes a string and a sound is made. Assuming the piano is in tune it will produce the desired pitch. The same goes for any other instrument. You create the desired fingering, embouchure, plucking of the string, or combination of these things and the correct pitch is played. With singing we really do have to hear the pitch before we make it . This is not to say that singing is superior or inferior to playing an instrument, it’s just different. Instrumentalists most certainly hear the pitches and music in their head the same as singers do. In fact, Solfege is a tool that all musicians can use and is a fantastic asset to their musical toolbox.
Thank you for taking the time to read this post. It means a lot to me. If you would like to hear more from me then I encourage you to subscribe to my newsletter and follow me on social media.
I look forward to seeing you in the studio and online!
Sincerely,
Adam
Continue this topic on another blog post: Solfege, sol what?
