Do Re Mi
Rogers and Hammerstein (Julie Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

Let's start at the very beginning
A very good place to start
When you read, you begin with--
[LITTLE GIRL] A, be, see!
[MARIA] When you sing, you begin with Do, Re, Mi
[CHILDREN] Do, Re, Mi
[MARIA] Do, Re, Mi
The first three notes just happen to be
Do, Re, Mi
[CHILDREN] Do, Re, Mi
[MARIA] Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So, La, Ti
[SPOKEN] Come, I'll make it easy for you. Listen:

[SUNG] Doe, a deer, a female deer
Ray, a drop of golden sun
Me, a name, I call myself
Far, a long, long way to run
Sew, a needle pulling thread
La, a note to follow So
Tea, a drink with jam and bread
That will lead us back to Do, oh, oh, oh
[WITH CHILDREN] Doe, a deer, a female deer
Ray, a drop of golden sun
Me, a name, I call myself
Far, a long, long way to run
Sew, a needle pulling thread
La, a note to follow So
Tea, a drink with jam and bread
That will lead us back to Do
Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So, La, Ti, Do-- So-- Do

[SPOKEN] Now, children, once you have these notes in your head, you can sing a
million tunes by mixing them up--like this:
[SUNG] So, Do, La, Fa, Mi, Do, Re... [SPOKEN] Now you do it.
[CHILDREN] So, Do, La, Fa, Mi, Do, Re
[MARIA] So, Do, La, Ti, Do, Re, Do
[CHILDREN] So, Do, La, Ti, Do, Re, Do
[MARIA, SPOKEN] Now let's put it all together:
[SUNG BY ALL] So, Do, La, Fa, Mi, Do, Re
So, Do, La, Ti, Do, Re, Do
[LITTLE GIRL] But it doesn't mean anything!
[MARIA] So we put in words--one word for every note:
[SUNG] When you know the notes to sing
You can sing most an--why--thing. [SPOKEN] Together!
[SUNG BY ALL] When you know the notes to sing
You can sing most an--why--thing
Doe, a deer, a female deer
Ray, a drop of golden sun
Me, a name, I call myself
Far, a long, long way to run
Sew, a needle pulling thread
La, a note to follow So
Tea, a drink with jam and bread




That will lead us back to Do
Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So, La, Ti, Do-- So-- Do

Overall Meaning

"Do Re Mi" is a song from the beloved musical "The Sound of Music" by Rogers and Hammerstein. It is sung by Maria, the main character, as she teaches the von Trapp children how to sing. The song starts with Maria teaching the children about the different notes using the solfege system. She explains that the first three notes are "Do, Re, Mi." She then proceeds to sing the iconic melody, "Doe, a deer, a female deer" to illustrate the meaning of the notes.


Throughout the song, Maria continues to teach the children about the solfege system and how it can be used to create any melody. She encourages them to mix up the notes to create new tunes, and shows them how the notes can be translated into words. In the end, the whole group sings the melody together, showing their newfound understanding of the solfege system and their ability to create music.


"Do Re Mi" is a cheerful and catchy song that has been beloved by generations. It teaches the importance of music education and the lifelong benefits of learning how to sing and read music. The song is also a great example of Rogers and Hammerstein's ability to create memorable melodies and lyrics that stay with audiences long after the show is over.


Line by Line Meaning

Let's start at the very beginning
Beginning at the start is always wise


A very good place to start
It is highly recommended as a starting point


When you read, you begin with--
Learning how to read starts with the basic letters


[LITTLE GIRL] A, be, see!
This young girl can only recall the first three letters of the alphabet


[MARIA] When you sing, you begin with Do, Re, Mi
In music, starting with Do, Re, Mi is where one begins singing


[CHILDREN] Do, Re, Mi
Children repeat the notes Do, Re, Mi.


[MARIA] Do, Re, Mi
Maria sings the notes Do, Re, Mi.


The first three notes just happen to be
These are the initial notes by chance


Do, Re, Mi
Do, Re, Mi are three musical notes


[CHILDREN] Do, Re, Mi
Children repeat the musical notes Do, Re, Mi


[MARIA] Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So, La, Ti
Maria sings the whole sequence of musical notes from Do to Ti


[SPOKEN] Come, I'll make it easy for you. Listen:
An attempt to make learning easier is about to be made


[SUNG] Doe, a deer, a female deer
Doe is a female deer and the song starts with it


Ray, a drop of golden sun
Ray is portrayed as a drop of golden sun


Me, a name, I call myself
Me is a name assigned to oneself


Far, a long, long way to run
When trying to get far away, one would have to run for a long time


Sew, a needle pulling thread
By using a needle, one can pull a thread through fabrics


La, a note to follow So
Musically, La is the note that follows So


Tea, a drink with jam and bread
Tea can be accompanied by bread and jam as a snack


That will lead us back to Do, oh, oh, oh
The song ends by returning back to the first musical note, Do


[WITH CHILDREN] Doe, a deer, a female deer
The children sing with Maria about the female deer named Doe


[SPOKEN] Now, children, once you have these notes in your head, you can sing a million tunes by mixing them up--like this:
Children are told that once they remember these notes, they can sing a variety of tunes by mixing things up


[SUNG] So, Do, La, Fa, Mi, Do, Re...
Musical notes are sung in a different order


[SPOKEN] Now you do it.
Children are tasked with doing what they just learned


[CHILDREN] So, Do, La, Fa, Mi, Do, Re
The children recite the musical notes they were taught in a different order


[MARIA] So, Do, La, Ti, Do, Re, Do
Maria demonstrates another variation of the musical notes


[CHILDREN] So, Do, La, Ti, Do, Re, Do
The children recite the notes Maria demonstrated


[MARIA, SPOKEN] Now let's put it all together:
Maria is ready to put everything together


[SUNG BY ALL] So, Do, La, Fa, Mi, Do, Re
All sing the musical notes collectively which are in a different order than before


So, Do, La, Ti, Do, Re, Do
The song is ended with these musical notes in another different order


[LITTLE GIRL] But it doesn't mean anything!
A Little Girl struggles to understand the meaning of the notes


[MARIA] So we put in words--one word for every note:
Maria creates a way to remember the meaning of each note


[SUNG] When you know the notes to sing You can sing most an--why--thing.
Knowing the musical notes opens up the possibility of singing almost anything possible


[SPOKEN] Together!
Everyone comes together to sing the song


[SUNG BY ALL] When you know the notes to sing You can sing most an--why--thing
Everyone sings together again about the potential that comes with learning musical notes


Doe, a deer, a female deer
The song ends with the original beginning line about the female deer named Doe


Ray, a drop of golden sun
The song reminds everyone of the beautiful nature of sunlight


Me, a name, I call myself
Everyone is reminded of the power of having a name


Far, a long, long way to run
The song implies that moving towards your goal takes time


Sew, a needle pulling thread
The song reminds everyone of the craft of sewing


La, a note to follow So
One of the many notes in the musical sequence is emphasized again


Tea, a drink with jam and bread
The song reminds everyone of the feeling of having tea with bread and jam


That will lead us back to Do
The song finishes once again by returning back to the first musical note, Do


Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So, La, Ti, Do-- So-- Do
The artist recites the full musical sequence one more time




Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Peermusic Publishing, IMAGEM MUSIC INC
Written by: OSCAR II HAMMERSTEIN, RICHARD RODGERS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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