Italian for Choir Rehearsals: Asking How to Follow a Repeat Sign in the Score
Learn polite Italian questions for asking a conductor or fellow singer how to follow a repeat sign, with rehearsal-ready phrases about the score and page.
By PookieFriends & plans · Yapr Learn
In an Italian choir rehearsal, the moment you lose your place at a repeat sign is the moment to ask a short, polite question. This lesson gives you the words you actually need in the room: il segno di ripetizione (the repeat sign), il ritornello (the repeated passage), da capo (from the beginning, as a direction), and la pagina (the page). You will learn how to ask the conductor or the singer next to you where to go after the repeat, how to check whether you return to the beginning or to another sign, and how to confirm the answer without interrupting the whole rehearsal. The phrases are standard contemporary Italian and work in amateur choral settings across Italy.
By the end, you can…
- ask the conductor or a fellow singer how to follow a repeat sign in the score.
- name the repeat sign, the repeated passage, the page, and the da capo direction in Italian.
- confirm where to resume singing after a repeat without disrupting rehearsal.
Listen once. Try it slowly. Then say it without looking.
Checking available voices…
Scusi, come si segue il segno di ripetizione?
Excuse me, how do you follow the repeat sign?
SKOO-zee, KOH-meh see SEH-gweh eel SEH-nyoh dee ree-peh-tets-TSYOH-neh
Polite question to the conductor or a singer; scusi is the safe polite form with someone you address formally.
Dopo il ritornello, torno all'inizio o vado al segno?
After the repeated passage, do I go back to the beginning or go to the sign?
DOH-poh eel ree-tor-NEL-loh, TOHR-noh al-lee-NEE-tsyoh oh VAH-doh al SEH-nyoh
Use this when the score has both a repeat and a sign; it asks which destination applies.
Devo ripetere da questa pagina?
Do I have to repeat from this page?
DEH-voh ree-PEH-teh-reh dah KWEH-stah PAH-jee-nah
A simple check when you are unsure whether the repeat starts on the current page.
C'è un da capo dopo il ritornello?
Is there a da capo after the repeated passage?
cheh oon dah KAH-poh DOH-poh eel ree-tor-NEL-loh
Asks specifically about a da capo direction; da capo means from the beginning.
Grazie, ora ho capito: riprendo dal segno.
Thank you, now I understand: I resume from the sign.
GRAH-tsyeh, OH-rah oh kah-PEE-toh: ree-PREN-doh dal SEH-nyoh
Confirms you understood and states where you will resume, so the conductor can correct you if needed.
Pronunciation guides are approximate. Slow playback keeps the original pitch.
Make it make sense
Useful pattern
The core pattern is a polite question with come si segue (how do you follow) plus the object: come si segue il segno di ripetizione? You can swap the object for other score features: come si segue il da capo? (how do you follow the da capo?) or come si segue il ritornello? (how do you follow the repeated passage?). To ask about your own action, use devo plus infinitive: devo ripetere da questa pagina? (do I have to repeat from this page?) or devo tornare all'inizio? (do I have to go back to the beginning?). These patterns keep the question short, which matters in a rehearsal.
When to use it
Use scusi with the conductor or an adult singer you do not know well; with a fellow singer your age, scusa is normal. Ask between pieces or during a pause, not while the conductor is giving directions. If the answer is unclear, repeat it back: quindi torno all'inizio, giusto? (so I go back to the beginning, right?). This confirms the instruction and shows you are listening. In many scores the repeat sign is a pair of dots with double bars, but in speech you simply say il segno di ripetizione; you do not need to describe the symbol itself.
Listen to each line, then take one part and reply out loud.
Scusi, come si segue il segno di ripetizione in questa pagina?
Excuse me, how do you follow the repeat sign on this page?SKOO-zee, KOH-meh see SEH-gweh eel SEH-nyoh dee ree-peh-tets-TSYOH-neh een KWEH-stah PAH-jee-nahDopo il ritornello, tornate all'inizio e poi andate al segno.
After the repeated passage, go back to the beginning and then go to the sign.DOH-poh eel ree-tor-NEL-loh, tor-NAH-teh al-lee-NEE-tsyoh eh poy an-DAH-teh al SEH-nyohQuindi ripeto da questa pagina e riprendo dal segno, giusto?
So I repeat from this page and resume from the sign, right?KWEEN-dee ree-PEH-toh dah KWEH-stah PAH-jee-nah eh ree-PREN-doh dal SEH-nyoh, JOO-stohSì, esatto. E non c'è un da capo in questo brano.
Yes, exactly. And there is no da capo in this piece.see, eh-ZAHT-toh. eh non cheh oon dah KAH-poh een KWEH-stoh BRAH-nohA little context goes a long way
In Italian choral rehearsals, questions are usually brief and timed between passages. Scusi is the standard polite opener with a conductor; scusa is fine with a peer. Conductors often answer with imperatives in the voi form, such as tornate (you all go back) or riprendete (you all resume), because they address the whole section. If you need to ask a neighbour quietly, keep your voice low and use scusa.
One thing to watch for
Using torni or ripeti when the conductor is addressing the whole choir, or saying da capo when you mean the repeat sign.
Try this instead: The conductor usually speaks to the group with voi forms: tornate all'inizio (go back to the beginning), riprendete dal segno (resume from the sign). Da capo is a specific direction meaning from the beginning, not a general word for any repeat. If you only mean the repeat sign, say il segno di ripetizione.
Your turn
Try answering out loud before checking a possible answer.
1How do you politely ask the conductor how to follow the repeat sign?
Show a sample answer
Scusi, come si segue il segno di ripetizione?
Scusi is the polite formal opener, and come si segue introduces the question about following the sign. With a peer, scusa would also be acceptable.
2You want to ask whether you return to the beginning after the repeated passage. What do you say?
Show a sample answer
Dopo il ritornello, torno all'inizio?
This uses dopo il ritornello for the repeated passage and torno all'inizio for going back to the beginning. You could also ask devo tornare all'inizio? with the same meaning.
3The conductor says riprendete dal segno. Where do you resume?
Show a sample answer
Dal segno, cioè dal segno indicato nella partitura.
Riprendete dal segno means resume from the sign marked in the score. The exact sign depends on the edition, so confirm with the conductor if the score has more than one sign.
Keep it short and polite: scusi with the conductor, scusa with a peer, then ask come si segue il segno di ripetizione or devo ripetere da questa pagina. Confirm the answer back before the next run-through.
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