TONIC SOLFA BEGINNING

Beginner Solfa Sight-Singing Practice Exercises

February 13, 2020 by Jaycron Amos|Solfa, Audiation, Sight Reading, Singing

When you look at a new sheet of music, can you immediately hear in your head how the notes would sound? This is particularly vital for singers who want to sight-read from score notation, but this kind of audiation from the score can benefit any musician. Solfa can let you know how those notes should sound and sight-sing from written music notation freely and confidently.

It doesn’t take long to learn the basics of solfa and begin to sing with the solfa syllables. However it does take work to then be able to connect this internal feel for solfa with written notes on the page. If you want to apply your solfa skills to sight-sing new sheet music, you will need to work on some practice exercises and develop this specific skill.

Below you will find a set of exercises you can use to begin practicing sight-singing using solfa!

How to sight-sing using solfa

If you are new to solfa, begin by reading our series Starting Solfa andSolfa and the Score which explain what solfa (a.k.a. solfège, solfeggio) is, how it works, and helps you begin to practice with the solfa syllables for the notes of the major pentatonic scale.

Solfa is a versatile framework which can allow you to sight-read even the most challenging music as a singer. When you first begin, it’s important to start simple and build a strong foundation.

In the exercises below we will keep things simple by only using the notes of the major pentatonic scale: do, re, mi, so, la, do’.

5 IMPORTANT TIPS FOR SUPRANO SINGERS

Are you a soprano? Keep your voice in great shape with these tips

Being born a soprano comes with both its perks and its challenges. On the one hand, we sopranos have a lot of thesolos in choruses and choirs, and most of the highly dramatic arias and ballads.

On the other hand, we tend to overwork and abuse our voice more often and get diagnosed with a lot more pathologies of the voice. Every voice type is special, and soprano singers have their own quirks. Here’s a list of five important tips for sopranos to keep in mind.

Be patient, but don’t wait too long.

A famed soprano refused to perform an aria from Mozart’s “The Magic Flute” until she was 30 years old, because she knew that she just wasn’t old enough yet. The human voice doesn’t really develop into all of its awesome brilliance until the mid-20s. And let’s face it, this could be one of those rare times in life when people tell you that you’re just too young. How great is that? That means that it’s important to listen to your voice teacher or your choir director if she tells you that you’re not ready for a certain song. On the other hand, singers’ voices have shelf lives, just like the bodies of professional athletes do. So, if you plan to pursue soprano singing as a professional career, don’t wait to find a voice coach. Start looking now!

It’s important to build endurance bylearning how to sing for increasingly longer periods of time. Follow the guidance of your teacher, but this is effectively done – among other things – by having more frequent, but shorter lessons. This means that if you’re currently taking a one-hour voice lesson every week, then you could take two half-hour voice lessons every week. By building both mental and physical endurance, you’re also improving your concentration, making you all the more ready to sing the big songs. But remember, nothing is more important to your career than the health and longevity of your voice. So, as is always the rule, listen to your body and pay attention to sensations as you sing and speak.

Eat right and work out.

Every voice type generally has its typical physical characteristics. In other words, baritones tend to be tall and lean. Tenors are usually shorter than other men, with short necks and broad shoulders. Contraltos and mezzo sopranos generally have curvy bodies, while sopranos tend to be petite with long necks and a smaller amount of muscle mass. Our bodies are our instruments, and one of our goals is to have a strong and solid instrument. So, what sopranos should keep in mind is that it’s often really helpful to make simple strength training, like lifting weights, a part of your practice regimen. Be careful not to be either underweight or overweight. Eating right — meaning the right balance of complex carbohydrates, fats, and protein (to build those muscles) — is also really helpful in achieving that strong and solid instrument.

Speak well.

My voice physician once told me that he estimated that ninety percent of the vocal problems that his patients face are from poor speaking habits, not poor singing technique. Avoid the very popular “vocal fry,” talk in a well-modulated voice at all times, consult your voice teacher if you have any concerns and seek only an ENT (ear, nose, throat) physician who specializes in treating voice professionals. And sometimes, if you have poor speaking habits, you may need to see a speech therapist who specializes in treating singers.

Get a laryngoscopy annually.

Sopranos in particular are prone to nodules, hemorrhages and other pathologies of the voice. Early detection and prevention is key to having a healthy voice for a lifetime. One of the best tips for sopranos to keep in mind is to see a voice specialist physician yearly for an exam of the vocal mechanism, specifically the folds. A laryngoscopy is a quick procedure where the physician will insert a tube into your nose or a scope with a video camera at the end, which can detect several problems for which you may not be experiencing symptoms, including cancer. You already get annual eye, dental, and general exams. Your voice deserves the same!

Perhaps the most important tip for sopranos to keep in mind is to make stress reduction a part of your daily life. Stress, and the tension that it can lead to, make soprano singing more difficult and can create both small and large problems over time. Learn stress-reducing techniques that are easy and that can be used all day long and in any situation. Your high notes are precious; keep calm and sing on!

RUN SCALES

Here is another way to run scales..
Learn to build up yourself in music..
Create a time and chance to rehears..
It may be useful for you in future.. 

HOW TO BUILD CONFIDENCE ON STAGE

Do you feel your legs trembling before large audiences? Do you forget everything you memorized for discussion? You are not alone. Lacking confidence on stage is something even the most professional performers can suffer from. However, with good preparation and delivery techniques, you can handle even the biggest of audiences. If you can think it, you can do it!

Part 1 of 3:

Practicing Your Performance

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   1
   Envision your best performance.Instead of imagining the worst scenario, challenge yourself to think more about how the performance could go well. Remind yourself why you are doing this performance, and why you believe in it. The good feelings will boost your confidence instead of increasing your nerves.^[1]
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   Practice often before performance day. Make sure that you know your lines, choreography, music, note cards, anything at all, completely by heart. You can go through everything daily to ensure that you won’t forget a thing. This way you won’t feel nervous about the possibility of forgetting something on stage.^[2]
   

   • If you're participating in a debate or giving a speech, research the topic of discussion thoroughly. This will increase your knowledge of the subject matter so you can speak confidently without sounding stumped. This is especially crucial if you will answer questions after the speech!
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   Record yourself beforehand for pointers. If you lack confidence because you don’t know how you look on stage, record yourself practicing and watch it back. Now you will have a clear idea of what the audience will see when you go on stage, and you can work on any mistakes you see.^[3]Part 2 of 3:

Building Your Confidence

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   1
   Eliminate all negative thoughts. If you start telling yourself that you can’t do this, you don’t know what you’re doing, and so on, your confidence will drop dramatically. Anything that you tell yourself regularly, you start to take as reality. This will make you think that you cannot pull off confidence on stage no matter how hard you work.
   

   • Put an end to this practice by replacing any negative thoughts with positive ones. It can be as simple as stopping yourself from thinking “I can’t do this” to “I can do this.” Saying positive thoughts out loud to yourself also makes a world of a difference.^[4]
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   Have your costume or favorite outfit ready to go. Pick out your outfit the night before so you are not worrying about it the day you go on stage. Choose something that you like and makes you feel secure and confident. If you have a costume, make sure that everything fits perfectly when you go into fittings, and don’t be afraid to speak up if something doesn’t feel right.^[5]
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   Talk to your friends or fellow performers. Chances are, anyone else that is going on stage with you is lacking confidence as well. Sharing these feelings can help you realize that you are not alone, and it is completely normal to be nervous. You can also tell a trusted friend or family member how you are feeling, and they will most likely share their excitement at seeing you onstage.
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   Get plenty of rest. You don’t want to appear tired for your speech or performance. Allow for your best night’s sleep the night before, whether it means going to bed early or listening to some calming music.^[6]
   

   • This is especially crucial for dancers! Don’t overdo anything at your dress rehearsal. Coming into a performance with your brain and muscles fatigued can increase your chance of getting an injury.^[7]
   
   
5. Part 3 of 3

Nailing Your Performance

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   1
   Make eye contact with people who look especially interested. If you feel your confidence beginning to slip but see people nodding in the crowd, don’t be afraid to focus on them. This will remind you that you are doing a great job and people are interested in what you are trying to do or say. If there are no nodding audience members to be found, you can also look at a trusted family member or friend who will support you no matter what happen 
   
   
   
   

   
   

   
   
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   Maintain a confident posture.Hunching forward makes you look less confident, and actually hinders your confidence as well. Stand up straight, act like you are balancing a book on your head, and your feelings will quickly improve. You will also make a good impression on the audience and how they see you.^[9]
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   Keep your voice loud and clear. This does not mean you need to shout. Just make sure that you are speaking loud enough that everyone in the room can hear. If you have trouble with this, practice in front of a group of friends to test your “public speaking” or “acting” voice.^[10]
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   Don't rush the performance. Time can be a tricky thing when you are on stage. Purposefully make yourself start out slow so you can get used to the audience and your place on stage. The audience may have trouble understanding you if you speak too fast. ^[11]
   

   • It helps to keep a timer clock going as you perform, to give you a better sense of how slowly (or quickly) time is actually passing. You can keep it on your podium, or just keep it in your pocket to take out and quickly glance at between subjects.
   • For dancers, pay attention to the music counts and make that a priority if you feel like you might be rushing. The music determines all of your movements!^[12]
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   Get the audience laughing, if possible.If permitted, ask questions, include facts they'll be interested in, and tell short stories relevant to subject matter. This will increase interaction and everyone will loosen up a bit.^[13]
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   End on a good note so the audience leaves in a happy mood. Be sure to end the discussion or performance with awow feeling. If you make a mistake but finish strong, chances are the audience will only remember your amazing ending.
   

   • For speakers, you can end with a question that will keep the audience thinking about your speech long after it ends. You can also end with a call to action that reiterates why you are speaking in the first place.
   • Dancers can act like they just gave the best performance in the world to end on a good note. No matter what happened in the performance itself, smile (if choreography allows), stand up straight with your shoulders back, and give the best finishing pose you’ve got.