The Solfeggio Scale another form of Literacy

Today as I was sitting in my collegiate choir class I realized that every Monday and Tuesday I use the Solfeggio scale (Do, re,mi,fa,so,la,ti,do) to sing each note or phrase in the pieces of music that we rehearse. I realized that using the Solfeggio scale is the key to understanding or being literate in accurately singing the songs that we perform within the choir as well as anywhere else that I may sing composed musical works. We also use hand gestures that represent the Solfeggio scale, each hand gesture corresponds with each phrase included in the Solfeggio scale. Our choir uses it when we warm up our voices before getting into a piece. Sometimes it can get really fun because my choral director mixes up the order of the phrases, just to test our brains to see if we have the notes and pitches memorized. This is a really good thing and it reinforces the fact that you must have an understanding of the Solfeggio scale in order to properly follow along. It is just another form of literacy, another way of interpreting something, and communicating, but with hand gestures and through the usage of the voice.