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Glite Dictionary
solfa syllable

solfa syllable

6.5
A syllable that names a musical note like do or mi
  • noun
  • /ˈsɒlfə ˈsɪləbəl/
  • Specialized
translation icon : símbolo de solfa
  • The teacher asked the students to sing the scales using the solfa syllables do, re, mi, fa, sol, la, and ti.

Examples

  • It translates easily to scales used in Western music, can be used for any key, and the vowel sounds of the solfa syllables offer the child practice in developing a round vowel sound and a beautiful, resonant singing tone.

    Academic text (2012)

  • Identify the solfa syllables used in this song.

    Academic text (2015)

  • Use a medium such as solfa syllables to connect pitches or lyrics heard with absolute pitches seen on staff.

    Academic text (2012)

  • In her music class, the children learned to identify each note by its solfa syllables during singing exercises.

  • When practicing sight-singing, it is helpful to use solfa syllables to accurately remember the pitch of the notes.

Synonyms

syllable
vssolfa syllable
66 1.1

One beat in a word that has a vowel sound

is used to name notes in a musical scale for singing instruction

Surface Forms

solfa syllable singular
solfa syllables plural

Morphology

solfa + syllable

The phrase is directly compositional: 'solfa' names the teaching system for pitch/singing and 'syllable' is a basic sound unit, so together they denote a syllable used in the solfa/solfège method. A B1 learner who knows both constituent meanings can readily infer this specific sense without prior exposure.

Etymology

Solfa syllable comes from an old singing method where teachers used simple sounds like do, re, mi, fa, sol, la, ti to name each note. Saying these syllables helped singers hear and remember each pitch, so today a 'solfa syllable' means the sung name for a musical note.