One, Two, Three — or Do, Re, Mi? Two ways of naming scale degrees, each with its own advantages. And why things get particularly interesting when we move from modes to chromatic notes.
If you’ve explored the FET Call-and-Response Tracks, you’ve probably noticed that the exercises come in three versions.
In the instrumental version, you hear the notes played by an instrument.
In the other two versions, a singer performs the same notes using either Nashville Numbers or Movable-Do Solfa.
But why offer two different ways of naming the notes?
Because both systems are useful for functional ear training, and each has its own strengths.
Numbers provide a straightforward way to identify scale degrees. Movable Do offers short, singable syllables that become especially useful when chromatic notes enter the picture.
There’s also an important principle behind the way I use both systems in FET: The seven degrees of a diatonic scale keep their names, regardless of which mode we’re playing in.
Let’s explore what that means.
1. Nashville Numbers: Seven Notes, Seven Numbers
The basic idea is simple.
Instead of identifying notes by their absolute pitches, we use numbers to describe their position within a diatonic scale.
For example, in C major:
| Note | C | D | E | F | G | A | B |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
In D major:
| Note | D | E | F♯ | G | A | B | C♯ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
The absolute pitches change, but the pattern of relationships within the scale remains the same.
That’s what makes numbers so convenient for functional ear training.
You can concentrate on the scale degrees without constantly translating everything into absolute note names.
And they’re easy to sing:
One – Three – Five – Three – Two – One.
But in FET, there’s another important aspect of how we use numbers.
We keep the same seven scale-degree numbers when we explore different modes of the same diatonic scale.
2. Seven Modes, Seven Notes — Different Tonal Centers
Let’s take the seven white keys of the piano:
C – D – E – F – G – A – B
These seven notes form the C major scale.
But depending on which note we hear as the tonal center, they can also form six other modes.
Here’s how FET treats them:
| Mode | Tonal center | Scale degrees |
|---|---|---|
| C Ionian | 1 – C | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 |
| D Dorian | 2 – D | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 |
| E Phrygian | 3 – E | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 |
| F Lydian | 4 – F | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 |
| G Mixolydian | 5 – G | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 |
| A Aeolian | 6 – A | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 |
| B Locrian | 7 – B | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 |
Notice something?
The numbers never change.
What changes is the tonal center.
In C Ionian, 1 is the tonal center.
In D Dorian, 2 is the tonal center.
In G Mixolydian, 5 is the tonal center.
And in A Aeolian, 6 is the tonal center.
We’re using the same seven notes and the same seven scale-degree names, but hearing them in relation to different tonal centers.
That distinction is central to the FET approach.
Why not renumber every mode from 1?
You certainly can describe D Dorian as a scale starting on D and use the formula:
1 – 2 – ♭3 – 4 – 5 – 6 – ♭7
That’s a common and perfectly valid way of describing its interval structure relative to D.
But it’s not how I label modes in FET.
In FET, Dorian is the second mode of the parent major scale. We therefore retain the original diatonic scale-degree names.
D is 2, E is 3, F is 4, and so on.
Likewise, in G Mixolydian, G remains 5 — it doesn’t suddenly become 1.
The advantage is that we can explore all seven modes without repeatedly redefining the scale-degree labels.
The seven notes form a common framework. The tonal center determines which mode we’re hearing.
This also means something important for ear training: A note can retain its scale-degree name while its musical role changes with the tonal center.
For example, C is degree 1 in all seven modes of the C major scale. But C is the tonic in C Ionian, the seventh above the tonic in D Dorian, and the fourth above the tonic in G Mixolydian.
Its label within the parent scale stays the same. Its relationship to the modal tonic changes.
3. Movable Do Works the Same Way in FET
Movable-Do Solfa provides another way to name these seven diatonic notes.
Instead of numbers, we use:
Do – Re – Mi – Fa – So – La – Ti
The correspondence is straightforward:
| Number | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solfa | Do | Re | Mi | Fa | So | La | Ti |
And just as with Nashville Numbers, the syllables remain attached to their parent-scale degrees when we explore different modes.
For example:
C Ionian
C – D – E – F – G – A – B – C
Do – Re – Mi – Fa – So – La – Ti – Do
D Dorian
D – E – F – G – A – B – C – D
Re – Mi – Fa – So – La – Ti – Do – Re
G Mixolydian
G – A – B – C – D – E – F – G
So – La – Ti – Do – Re – Mi – Fa – So
A Aeolian
A – B – C – D – E – F – G – A
La – Ti – Do – Re – Mi – Fa – So – La
The important point is that Dorian doesn’t require a new set of syllables, and neither does Mixolydian.
We simply sing the same diatonic syllables, beginning and ending on a different scale degree.
There is no need for altered syllables merely because we’re playing in a different mode.
This is especially convenient when you want to explore how changing the tonal center changes the way you hear familiar notes.
4. So Why Use Both Numbers and Solfa?
For the seven diatonic degrees, both systems work remarkably well.
Numbers are familiar and easy to understand.
If you already think of music in terms of scale degrees, chord tones, or harmonic relationships, numbers may feel quite natural.
And they fit well with the numerical language used by many musicians when discussing chords and improvisation.
Solfa, on the other hand, was developed as a system of syllables for singing.
Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So, La, and Ti are short and easy to articulate.
In the basic seven-note diatonic system, I don’t think there’s a compelling reason to declare one approach universally superior.
They simply offer two different ways to connect what you hear with the scale degrees.
But things change when we leave the seven-note diatonic collection.
5. What Happens When We Introduce Chromatic Notes?
So far, we’ve stayed within the same seven diatonic notes.
But what about notes outside that collection?
In blues and jazz, for example, we frequently encounter chromatic notes, altered chord tones, and passing notes.
Let’s stay with C major as our parent scale.
The seven diatonic notes are:
C – D – E – F – G – A – B
Now suppose we want to include E♭, F♯, or B♭.
These notes are not part of our seven-note parent scale.
We therefore need additional names to distinguish them from the original scale degrees.
With numbers, we can use accidentals:
- E♭ = ♭3
- F♯ = ♯4
- B♭ = ♭7
This works very well when we’re writing or discussing music.
But what happens when we try to sing these names?
We get:
Flat Three – Sharp Four – Flat Seven.
And that introduces a practical problem.
6. Where Nashville Numbers Become Awkward to Sing
For ordinary scale degrees, numbers are easy enough to sing:
One – Two – Three – Four – Five.
But chromatically altered degrees need an additional word.
Instead of Three, we sing Flat Three.
Instead of Four, we sing Sharp Four.
Instead of Seven, we sing Flat Seven.
These names are perfectly understandable, but they don’t always fit comfortably into a melodic phrase.
Imagine singing this sequence:
1 – ♭3 – 3 – 4 – ♯4 – 5 – ♭7 – 1
Using numbers, you’d sing:
One – Flat Three – Three – Four – Sharp Four – Five – Flat Seven – One.
That’s quite a mouthful.
Especially in faster phrases, the extra syllables can become an obstacle.
This isn’t a limitation of the numerical system as a way of describing musical relationships.
It’s a limitation of using those names as syllables to sing.
And that’s where chromatic Movable Do offers an advantage.
7. Movable Do Has Special Syllables for Chromatic Notes
Movable Do doesn’t stop with Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So, La, and Ti.
It also provides additional syllables for chromatically altered scale degrees.
Here are some examples:
| Scale degree | Nashville Numbers | Movable Do |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | One | Do |
| ♯1 | Sharp One | Di |
| ♭2 | Flat Two | Ra |
| 2 | Two | Re |
| ♭3 | Flat Three | Me |
| 3 | Three | Mi |
| ♯4 | Sharp Four | Fi |
| ♭5 | Flat Five | Se |
| 5 | Five | So |
| ♯5 | Sharp Five | Si |
| ♭6 | Flat Six | Le |
| 6 | Six | La |
| ♯6 | Sharp Six | Li |
| ♭7 | Flat Seven | Te |
| 7 | Seven | Ti |
The beauty of this system is that each of these chromatic names has just one syllable.
Instead of singing Flat Three, we sing Me.
Instead of Sharp Four, we sing Fi.
Instead of Flat Seven, we sing Te.
And instead of Sharp Six, we sing Li.
This makes it much easier to fit the note names into actual musical phrases.
Take our previous example:
Numbers:
One – Flat Three – Three – Four – Sharp Four – Five – Flat Seven – One.
Solfa:
Do – Me – Mi – Fa – Fi – So – Te – Do.
The second version is considerably more compact.
The pitches are the same, but the words are much easier to sing.
For me, that’s the biggest practical advantage of chromatic Movable Do.
8. Modes Are Not the Same as Chromatic Alterations
There’s an important distinction here, especially in the context of FET.
When we move from C Ionian to D Dorian, we aren’t introducing chromatic notes.
We’re still using:
C – D – E – F – G – A – B
And their FET labels remain:
1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 – 6 – 7
Or:
Do – Re – Mi – Fa – So – La – Ti
The fact that D is now the tonal center doesn’t turn F into a chromatically lowered third in our FET notation.
F remains scale degree 4, or Fa, within the parent scale.
It’s only when we introduce notes outside the parent diatonic collection that we need chromatic alterations.
For example, if we add E♭ to our C-major-based note collection, we can call it ♭3 or Me.
That distinction matters because the terms modal and chromatic describe different things.
A change of mode changes which note functions as the tonal center.
A chromatic alteration introduces a pitch outside the established diatonic collection.
Of course, we can combine both.
We might explore a Dorian tonal center while also introducing chromatic approach notes.
In that case, we retain the parent-scale labels for the seven diatonic notes and use altered labels for the additional pitches.
This keeps the naming system consistent.
9. Why Chromatic Solfa Is Particularly Useful for Blues and Jazz
Blues and jazz make frequent use of pitches beyond a simple seven-note diatonic collection.
You might encounter blue notes, chromatic approach notes, altered chord tones, or melodies that move between different harmonic colors.
Some of these notes can be difficult to fit into a seven-note numerical vocabulary without adding words like Flat and Sharp.
Movable Do offers compact alternatives.
Consider this melodic sequence in a C-major-based reference system:
C – E♭ – E – F – F♯ – G – B♭ – C
Using numbers:
One – Flat Three – Three – Four – Sharp Four – Five – Flat Seven – One.
Using Solfa:
Do – Me – Mi – Fa – Fi – So – Te – Do.
Both describe the same pitches relative to the parent diatonic scale.
But the Solfa version is easier to articulate rhythmically.
That’s why I find chromatic Solfa particularly useful when singing jazz and blues phrases.
It doesn’t make the music less complex.
It simply gives us shorter names for the pitches.
One qualification is worth mentioning: In chromatic Solfa, enharmonic notes may receive different syllables.
For example, A♯ can be called Li, while B♭ is called Te.
On an equal-tempered instrument, they sound at the same pitch, but their spelling and musical interpretation differ.
So Solfa doesn’t remove every theoretical decision. It provides a practical singing vocabulary once we’ve decided how to name the notes.
10. Movable Do vs. Fixed Do
There’s another distinction that sometimes causes confusion.
Not everyone who sings Do, Re, Mi is using Movable Do.
There are two main approaches:
Movable Do and Fixed Do.
Fixed Do: Do Always Means C
In Fixed Do, the syllables represent specific note names.
Do is always C.
Re is always D.
Mi is always E.
And so on.
| Note | Fixed Do |
|---|---|
| C | Do |
| D | Re |
| E | Mi |
| F | Fa |
| G | Sol |
| A | La |
| B | Si |
If a melody begins on D, you sing Re, regardless of which key or mode you’re in.
In Fixed Do, the syllables function as note names rather than scale-degree labels.
Movable Do: The Syllables Move with the Parent Scale
In Movable Do, the syllables describe positions within a scale.
In C major:
C – D – E – F – G – A – B
Do – Re – Mi – Fa – So – La – Ti
In D major:
D – E – F♯ – G – A – B – C♯
Do – Re – Mi – Fa – So – La – Ti
The pitches change, but the syllables retain their scale-degree meanings.
And in FET, the syllables remain associated with these same parent-scale degrees when we explore the different modes.
For example, in D Dorian, the tonal center is Re.
In G Mixolydian, the tonal center is So.
In A Aeolian, the tonal center is La.
This is a La-based-minor approach, extended consistently to the other modes: the tonic of a mode is not automatically renamed Do.
That last point is important because not all Movable-Do traditions handle minor keys and modes in the same way.
Some approaches use Do as the tonic in minor keys, with altered syllables for the notes that differ from the major scale.
That’s a valid alternative system, but it isn’t the way FET labels its diatonic modes.
In FET, we retain the seven degrees and their corresponding syllables, regardless of which of them becomes the tonal center.
11. Why FET Offers Both Systems
Now we can return to the original question.
Why provide both Nashville Numbers and Movable-Do Solfa versions of the exercises?
Because they offer different practical advantages.
Nashville Numbers are straightforward, familiar, and closely connected to the numerical language musicians use to discuss scales, chords, and harmony.
In FET, they also provide a consistent framework for exploring all seven modes of a parent scale, with no need to renumber the notes every time the tonal center changes.
Movable-Do Solfa provides the same consistent diatonic framework, but with syllables specifically suited to singing.
And when chromatic notes enter the picture, its additional one-syllable names become particularly convenient.
I don’t see these systems as competitors.
They are different ways of naming the same musical material.
You may prefer to think in numbers but sing in Solfa.
You may find numbers more intuitive for understanding harmonic relationships and Solfa more convenient for singing fast melodic phrases.
Or you may simply prefer one system over the other.
That’s why FET gives you a choice.
12. The Names Are Tools — The Sounds Are What Matter
Whether you’re singing One, Two, Three or Do, Re, Mi, the purpose of functional ear training is not to memorize terminology.
It’s to become familiar with musical sounds and relationships.
The names provide a way to identify and reproduce what you hear.
The tonal center gives those notes their musical context.
And the combination of listening, singing, and playing helps you explore how the notes behave in that context.
Nashville Numbers and Movable Do offer two different vocabularies for doing this.
Seven diatonic degrees, different modal centers, and additional names when chromatic notes enter the music.
Choose the vocabulary that works best for you — or use both.
The important thing is to listen, sing, and make music.
Explore the FET Call-and-Response Tracks
All FET Call-and-Response collections offer the same exercises in three versions:
- Instrumental calls
- Nashville Numbers
- Movable-Do Solfa