<aside> <img src="/icons/globe_purple.svg" alt="/icons/globe_purple.svg" width="40px" />
Live project: https://justinjohnso-itp.github.io/cmus-github-repo/week-7-homework/
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<aside> <img src="/icons/gear_lightgray.svg" alt="/icons/gear_lightgray.svg" width="40px" />
Github repo: https://github.com/justinjohnso-itp/cmus-github-repo/tree/main/week-7-homework
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I wanted to create a way to turn the Solfege hand signs into audio representations of their respective notes.
Solfege (also spelled Solfège or Solfa) is a centuries-old system for teaching pitch and sight singing. While most familiar to many through "Do-Re-Mi" from The Sound of Music, it's a sophisticated pedagogical tool used worldwide in music education.
The system comes in two main variants:
The syllables (Do, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La, Ti, Do) are designed to be easily singable and distinguishable from each other, making them effective tools for practicing intervals and understanding scale relationships.
The Curwen/Kodály hand signs are a series of physical gestures that correspond to each solfege syllable. Created by John Curwen and later adapted by Zoltán Kodály, these hand signs provide visual and kinesthetic reinforcement for pitch relationships:
These hand signs are particularly valuable in music education as they help students visualize pitch relationships and internalize intervals while singing. The system creates a physical connection between the body and musical concepts, making sight-singing more intuitive and accessible.
Do: Closed fist representing the strong, grounded tonic note.
Re: Hand pointing upward and slightly to the side, showing upward movement from Do.
Mi: Flat palm facing downward, indicating a stable third scale degree.
Fa: Thumb pointing downward, representing the half-step between Mi and Fa.
Sol: Hand pointing forward with palm facing sideways, showing a strong dominant note.
La: Palm cupped upward, forming a natural sixth.
Ti: Pointing finger upward, indicating the leading tone's pull back to Do.
I got a whoooole lot of help in setting up the ml5 model from these sketches: https://editor.p5js.org/justinjohnso/collections/qe6xlC0Xt