solfège

See also: solfege

English

Alternative forms

• solfege

Etymology

Borrowed from French solfège. Doublet of solfeggio.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sɒlˈfeɪʒ/, /sɒlˈfɛʒ/

Noun

solfège (usually uncountable, plural solfèges)

1. (music) A method of sight singing that uses the syllables do (originally ut), re, mi, fa, sol (or so), la, and si (or ti) to represent the seven principal pitches of the scale, most commonly the major scale. The fixed-do system uses do for C, and the moveable-do system uses do for whatever key the melody uses (thus B is do if the piece is in the key of B). The relative natural minor of a scale may be represented by beginning at la.
   • 2020, Ben Creed, City of Ghosts, London: Welbeck Publishing, →ISBN, page 264:

     Her note is F – F in the German naming convention, fa in the solfege system we use in Russia.

Synonyms

• solfeggio
• solmization
• solmisation
• sol-fa

Translations

method of sight singing

• Bulgarian: солфеж (bg) m (solfež)
• Catalan: solfeig (ca) m, solfa (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 唱名 (zh) (chàngmíng)

• Estonian: solfedžo
• Finnish: solfeesi (fi)
• French: solfège (fr) m
• Galician: solfexo (gl) m
• Hungarian: szolmizálás, (this field of musical education) szolfézs (hu)
• Italian: solfeggio (it) m
• Korean: 솔페주 (solpeju)
• Polish: solfeż (pl) m
• Portuguese: solfejo (pt) m
• Russian: сольфе́джио (ru) n (solʹfédžio)
• Serbo-Croatian: солфеђо m, solfeđo (sh) m
• Spanish: solfa m, solfeo (es) m
• Tamil: சொல்ஃபெஜ் (colfej)
• Welsh: solffeuo m

See also

• Aretinian
• fixed-do
• movable-do

Anagrams

• ego-self, golfese

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian solfeggio.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /sɔl.fɛʒ/

• Audio:

  (file)

Noun

solfège m (plural solfèges)

1. (singing) the art of singing using the sol-fa system
2. sol-fa, solfège
3. (metonymically) music theory, the training and courses that come with it as well as one's knowledge of it
   • Prendre des cours de solfège.

     To partake in music theory classes.

Descendants

• → Bulgarian: солфеж (solfež)
• → English: solfège
• → Finnish: solfeesi
• → Galician: solfexo
• → Japanese: ソルフェージュ (sorufēju)
• → Korean: 솔페주 (solpeju)
• → Latvian: solfēža
• → Lithuanian: solfežas
• → Persian:

  Iranian Persian: سلفژ (solfež)

• → Polish: solfeż
• → Portuguese: solfejo
• → Turkish: solfej

Further reading

• “solfège”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.