Sol-fa [solfège-Fr., solfeggio-It.] is a system that uses syllables to represent the notes of the diatonic scale.  This system aids in musical analysis, sight-singing and aural comprehension. Sol-fa was first developed as a teaching tool by Benedictine monk, Guido of Arezzo, who adapted it from a Latin hymn written around 770 A.D. However, in modern times, many have become familiar with sol-fa syllables through their immortalization in the Rogers and Hammerstein Musical, The Sound of Music.

Sol-fa may be applied in one of two ways: In fixed ‘do’ form, the letter C is called ‘do’ regardless of the tonality of the music and regardless of any accidentals. This type of sol-fa is used in parts of Europe and as part of some training programs such as the Yamaha and Forte keyboard approaches.

In England, through the work of Sarah Glover and John Curwen, moveable do sol-fa (tonic sol-fa) became the favoured tool to teach singers to read music (sight sing). It was this form that was adopted by the Hungarian teachers and became a feature of the Kodály approach.  

In tonic sol-fa, the tonic (key) note of any major scale is called ‘do’. 

The tonic note of any minor scale is ‘la’.  It is important to call it "la" to preserves its relationship to the major scale and ensures consistency when labeling the intervals within the scale.



It is possible to chromatically raise or lower sol-fa syllables. A harmonic minor scale can be formed by raising the seventh note of the natural minor scale one semitone higher, thus ‘so’ becomes ‘si’.

Common scales with their corresponding sol-fa syllables:

 Ascending chromatic scale (using sharps):

Descending chromatic scale (using flats):

Melodic Minor scale: