Fee ee ee eo 8 8 888 8 oUF OSE U EEE EEE EEEUG SY Practice Method for Sightsinging Tt outline is a suggested practice method for learning to heer and sing a new vable-Do solfege. Please note that the order of steps (shown below) is the ted approach for the beginning student. After some time has been spent prac: pproach and a reasonably comfortable level of facility with it is attained, the student ‘aged to choose only those steps that are best suited to accomplish small tasks ve procedural problems as they arise. Do not play the melody first and then sing it! Do not write the solfege in the book! Practice slowly! — with or without a metronome. 1. Rhythm: Practice just the rhythm with Tah (or Dah) and Conduct. 2. Dry Solfege (Out of Time): Identity each new note in the melody by saying its corresponding solfege syllable without pitch. If solfege recognition is not immediate, try saying each new syllable with every beat of the metronome as a practice method for improving this skill. 3. Dry Solfege (In Time): While conducting, practice saying the syllables in their notated rhythm — yet still without pitch. 4. Melodic contour singing: Sing each pitch of the melody with solfege (in order while skipping repeated notes), but out-of-time. 5. Sing the Melody: Put all of the elements together — sol CONDUCTING. e, rhythm, pitch, in time while Problem solving techniques: Practice the problem areas out-of-time by: - 1. Singing additional unnotated target pitches with solfege to help you hear the notated pitch- es (i., to hear the interval do to mi, sing do, re, mi); 2. Inner hear (imagine singing the pitch without actually singing aloud) additional unnotated target pitches with solfege to help you hear the notated pitches (i.e, to hear the interval do to sol, sing do, inner hear re, mi, fa and then sing sol); 3. Use octave displacement as a means to hear larger intervals that may occur in a melody (.2., to hear a minor seventh interval from do down to re, first sing or inner hear the high do ‘moving up to re. Then sing the re one octave lower). This technique will make singing and hearing larger intervals much easier. 4. (Especially for sight reading): Look over the melodic contour for melodic and rhythmic pat- terns which repeat, pitches which outline triads and 7th chords, inversions, accidentals! non-diatonic pitches and pitches not found in the original key or mode. Practice material enough to perform accurately, in time, in tune, and with correct solfege. You can practice and perform melody and rhythm at any tempo you wish, as long as you can per- ‘form it accurately and without interrupting the time flow. When sight-singing, do not stop time to ‘fix’ errors or comment on your own performance (i.e., expletives, facial gestures, groans, etc.)...maintain the flow! ETI Chapter 1-11