ASL Deconstruction of "Do-Re-Mi" from THE SOUND OF MUSIC

(Image description: "Do-Re-Mi" from the film The Sound of Music: Maria is playing the guitar while the seven von Trapp children look on)

*music plays*

"Let's start at the very beginning... a very good place to start!" Right? Here we go!

*warms up hands*

"When we read, we begin with A-B-C"

Easy enough.

"When we sing, we begin with Do-Re-Mi!"

Wait - wait - how do we sign Do?
Doe, as in a female deer? Or Dough as in pastry dough? Or even green cash? What about Re? A guy named Ray whose name sign I could borrow? A manta ray? Mi - sounds like "me" but looks like the first half of the name "Mimi" - where's the sign for that? 

How do we sign the solfege scale in American Sign Language (ASL)? How can we show the scale so that Deaf and Hard of Hearing individuals can see what the heck Maria is singing about when she instructs us to start at the very beginning?

Looking at the original English lyrics, we have:

Do, a deer, a female deer
Re, a drop of golden sun
Mi, a name I call myself
Fa, a long long way to run
So, a needle pulling thread
La, a note to follow So
Ti, a drink with jam and bread,
That will bring us back to Do!

Do we have to stick with the English lyrics in our translation of "Do-Re-Mi", or should we follow the examples of foreign language translations in coming up with our own interpretation that might fit the parameters of ASL? Let's take a look:

(English translation in parenthesis)

The 2005 Austrian Volksoper production decided to rewrite the translation by using the alphabet that correspond to the solfege scale (C-D-E- and so on) instead of the syllables. Hence, their translation veers away from the original lyrics of Messers Rodgers and Hammerstein. 

German version
C, wie Cellophanpapier, (C, as in cellophane)
D, bei D-Zug denkt man dran, (D, a D-train one remembers)
E, ein Elefantentier, (E, an elephant)
F, wie Flatterhafte Fahn', (F, as a flighty flag)
G, Gesangsverein vom Land, (G, a singing group of the land)
A, vom Alphabet bekannt, (A, from the alphabet known)
H, wie Hagebuttentee, (H, such as rose-hip tea)
das fuhrt uns zuruck zu C.

Source: The Sound of Music German Lyrics Trivia

Dutch version: 
Do denk maar aan domino. (Do, think of domino)
Ree een hertje in de wei. (Re, a deer in the field)
Mi de kat die doet miauw. (Mi, a cat that does meow)
Fa familie dat zijn wij.  (Fa, a family that's us)
So zo heet de spaanse zon (So, that's the name of the Spanish sun)
La die zit in mijn buro . (La, that's in my desk)
Si sigaar uit mexico .  (Si, cigar from Mexico)
En dat brengt ons weer bij do do do  (and that bring us again to Do)

(Source: "Do Re Mi" Nederlandse Versie )

Italian version:
Do, se do qualcosa a te, (Do, if you do something to you)
Re,  è il re che c’era un dì. (Re, is the king that there was a day)
Mi,è mi per dire a me. (Mi, it is for me to say to me)
Fa,la nota dopo il Mi. (Fa, the note after Mi)
Sol,è il sole in fronte a me. (Sol, the sun is in front of me)
La,se proprio non è qua. (La, if you is not here)
Si,se non ti dico no. (Si, if you do not say no)
E così ritorno al Do. (And so return to Do)

(Source: Serena's Italian Blog)
(Rough translation provided by Google Translate - any native speakers out there, feel free to correct any errors!)

So now that we have versions in English, German, Dutch, and Italian - let's take another look at the German version which substitutes the letters C-D-E-F-G-A-B in lieu of Do-Re-Mi-Fa-So-La-Ti. Perhaps that will work with the ASL version? ASL uses hand shapes as classifiers, so perhaps we can find a sign that will match the hand shapes C, D, F, G, A, and B? There is no hand shape for E that does not use initialized English signs (i.e. "emergency") - but we will cover that in a bit. 

Now - brainstorming time! What signs start with those word-signs that might suit 1930s Austria and the musical itself? Any line we can move around and still keep the flavor of the original lyrics? 

C - Cookies? A glass of something? Cake?
D- a person? 
E (which stands alone for now)
F - Sewing? Family? Tea? Cat? 
G - Whistles? Birds? 
A - Game? Race? 
B - Flag? Sailboat? 

While we brainstorm for more sign choices, let's go back to E, the letter that stands alone. In doing research, I came across a tidbit about the songwriters and their struggle in finding an appropriate line for "La". The results of Messers Rodgers and Hammerstein plugged in "La, a note to follow So" was a placeholder until something better could be created. Yet, that line made it into the final version. The Italian version followed this example for the "Fa" line. So perhaps, we could follow in their example and create a tribute to that "placeholder" that stands alone - with "E, the letter following D"? 

After a brainstorming session, several friends and I came up with the following: 

C, C-GROUP SING SIGN-SIGN (as in a singing group that signs)

D, KNOW D-TRAIN GONE SORRY (Sorry, you missed the D-train)

E, LETTER FOLLOW D *SHRUGS* (For the letter following D)

F, TEA WITH JAM + BREAD (For tea with jam and bread)

G, BIRDS FLY-HIGH G-DISTANCE (For the birds that fly high in the sky)

A, GAME WE PLAY MINGLE (A game that we all play)

B, FLAG PULL-UP-FLAGPOLE FLUTTERING-FLAG (For the flighty flag)

Which brings us back to C!

We did have a heated debate on whether F should adopt the original "So, a needle pulling thread" or the "Tea, with jam and bread" line. Obviously our foodie side won out. 

Got any ideas on how we can improve the ASL translation should a ASL/Deaf production of THE SOUND OF MUSIC ever surface? 

Another suggestion was to rewrite the following:

When you read, you begin with A-B-C,
When you sing, you begin with Do-Re-Mi

with the following:

When you count, you begin with 1-2-3
When you sign, you begin with C-D-sideways 3.

The sideways 3 does *look* like an E, and is used as a classifier in ASL to depict vehicles in motion. Thus, if we were to use that hand shape instead in order to make those two lines rhyme, one could theoretically rewrite the line as "sideways 3, as in a bicycle race" (or a car ride or a sailing on a boat or any other vehicle-related action with the exception of airplanes which has its own classifier to use). 

What about the solfege hand signals? Couldn't one use them and still sign the original lyrics? Here is a picture of the signals: 

(Image description: Solfege hand signals)

Source: Soundpiper

Looking at the hand signals, one can see how it might not be useful - how can a closed-fist for "Do" correspond to a deer, which uses the open 5 hand shape? Would Deaf/HOH audiences and performers know the solfege hand signals in order to make the correlation between signal and the phrase that corresponds with it? 

Which one would you prefer to see used in the ASL translation - finger spelling DO-RE-MI, switching over to C-D-E / C-D-3, or try to incorporate the solfege hand signals? Or another system entirely? 

Got ideas of your own? Share them here. How can we make this song more accessible and context-friendly for Deaf/HOH audiences and performers, given the sound-based lyrics? 

And thus, our first song for the beginning of a "Song Deconstruction" series that I will be occasionally musing over on this blog. Are there any other songs out there that you would love to see a lens-focused deconstruction on and dissect it into its bare form in order to translate (or transpose) it into ASL? I'm taking suggestions - at this point, I'm accepting nominations of Broadway or Disney songs!