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Estimated reading time 4 minutes
Table of Contents
Introduction
Is singing solfege actually helpful for learning to hear intervals by ear? Sort of. In some contexts, solfege can be useful for hearing how the intervals sound so you can sing in tune. In others, solfege won’t help at all. Read more to answer the question, “Is singing solfege helpful for learning to hear intervals by ear?”
- In the 11th century, a monk named Guido of Arezzo developed a system of solmization.
- It used a variety of syllables to represent the different notes in the mediaeval hexachord system.
- Arezzo’s system eventually evolved into the solfege we know today.
- Thus, modern vocal teachers often employ an updated version of Guido’s system to help singers learn to identify and reproduce musical intervals accurately.
- In this post, we’ll explore the benefits and drawbacks of solfege for interval training with the aim of singing in tune.
- Also, we’ll briefly look at how the brain processes melody and harmony.
For practical examples showing you how to sight sing:
This article uses technical musical terms. For definitions, see the Glossary at the end of the post.
When Singing Solfege Is Helpful for Learning to Hear Intervals by Ear: The Benefits of Solfege for Producing Accurate Melodic Intervals
“…a melody is unlike a chord in that its notes are spread over time (or remembering, at least, categorizations of tones) for a few seconds after the tone has faded” (Jourdain 83-84).
“Okay,” you might say, “but does this tell me if singing solfege is actually helpful for learning to hear intervals by ear?”
- When you sing solfege, you use your melodic memory to help you remember the distance between notes.
- Solfege can be a powerful tool for developing your ability to hear and reproduce melodic intervals accurately.
- When you sing solfege, you associate each note with a specific syllable, which will help you develop a strong sense of melodic interval relationships.
- This can be especially helpful when you wish to learn how to recognize and reproduce melodic intervals by ear.
- With proper sound model support, this also applies when you want to sing the melodic intervals in tune.
For more information on how to sing solfege (including sing-along soundtracks for proper melodic sound model support) read:
When Singing Solfege Is Not Helpful for Learning to Hear Intervals by Ear: The Drawbacks of Solfege for Harmonizing in Tune
The brain processes harmony differently than melody. With harmony the brain directly compares the overtones of each pitch.
- If the frequencies of the pitches significantly overlap, the brain fuses them together into chords.
- Instead of listening to the distance between the notes, as you do with solfege, you’ll listen to the overall tone color.
- Particularly, you need to listen for the amount of buzz between the notes of a chord.
- While singing solfege actually is helpful for learning to hear intervals by ear for melodies, it won’t be effective for developing your ability to harmonize in tune.
- Why? Because harmony involves the relationship between two or more notes sung at the same time, while solfege focuses on using your melodic memory.
To develop your ability to harmonize in tune, you’ll need to use harmonic sound models (i.e, sing-along soundtracks). For more information see:
Concluding Thoughts to “Is Singing Solfege Helpful for Learning to Hear Intervals by Ear?”
Singing solfege actually is helpful for learning to hear intervals by ear – at least for melodies. This means that if you only work on solfege, you’ll have a half-trained ear.
You’ll also need to do harmonic ear training as well, to hone your harmonizing skills. If you do, you’ll see the benefits right away.
Have fun singing!
© 2023 Geoffrey Keith
Join me for in-person or online lessons today!
Glossary
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