Note Names vs. Solfege

Koreans are often used to sight-singing with solfege because they learn it in schools. I don’t find it very common in the United States. For example, the teacher who teaches ear training at my school prefers not to use solfege in class.

If one is going to sing tunes using note names frequently, it can be worth learning solfege because the syllables used in solfege are much simpler than the note names, especially with accidentals. However, as introducing a new note-reading system can be an additional burden on students, it also makes sense that some teachers choose not to include solfege in their curriculum when their students are not mainly vocalists.