French-Style Solfège: What Makes It Unique
Solfège is a French Term
France has a long-standing tradition of music theory education, with carefully developed curricula that support every stage of learning. These educational practices are characterized by a practical, experience-based approach that aims to nurture expressive power in music, always grounded in actual musical activity.
One example is ear training, a component of solfège, which is also commonly practiced in Japan. In France, however, its scope is much broader. Students train not only with major and minor scales, but also with modes such as church modes, cultivating a more flexible sense of hearing for diverse tonal colors. Instruments used in training go beyond just the piano, helping to refine both pitch recognition and sensitivity to timbre. It is also common to use actual musical works—like orchestral excerpts—for ear training.
In harmony exercises as well, the focus goes beyond merely verifying theoretical correctness. Attention is placed on how to shape and connect tones to produce natural, rich musical textures.
In recent years, this educational framework has come to be called formation musicale in France. However, the term solfège is still widely used in practice. Because this term is also more familiar to learners in Japan, MonLasol uses solfège consistently throughout its materials.