The essential form of soleares is the essential form for many palos:

1) A guitar introduction that sets the mood, key and tempo of the piece.

2) A temple/salida, in which the singer uses simple syllables to tune into the guitar and fix the tempo.

3) Two or three sung letras, generally interspersed with falsetas by the guitarist.

4) If a dancer is part of the performance, the dancer will interpret the letras lyyically and rhythmically, and will perform an escobilla or even several escobillas, footwork sections at a faster tempo, accompanied by a standardized series of arpeggios on the guitar.

5) A dance, guitar or cante performance may also include a macho, a transition to a faster form with the same basic underlying compás. It is a common practice to transition directly into bulerías, or to soléa por bulerías transitioning into bulerías