All Hail, Life-bearing Cross in Tonic Solfa
All Hail, Life-bearing Cross in Tonic Solfa to ST. BRIDE, doh is Bb: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 5 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| l,All- | m,hail,-l,life-dbear--t,ing- | l,Cross,-----dThe- |
| s,tro--dphy-mof-rthe- | dgood,-----mThy- |
| rbloom-dis-t,fra--l,grance- | s,on-f,our-m,way,-mThy- |
| l,fruit-rour-dheav--t,enly- | l,food.----- |
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- Key
- G minor
- Doh
- Bb
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- l, (G)
- Range
- m, to m (D to D, an octave)
- Tune
- ST. BRIDE
- Words
- Traditional Greek, John Brownlie
- Music
- Samuel Howard
Tune ST. BRIDE by Samuel Howard (died undefined); words by Traditional Greek; translated by John Brownlie (1857–1925). Sources and licences.
The solfa line by line
The same solfa as plain text, a line of the hymn at a time, with the words of the first verse under it — easy to copy into your own notes or a message to the choir. To print it, download the solfa as a PDF.
Doh is Bb · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in G minor, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
All hail, life-bearing Cross,
The trophy of the good,
Thy bloom is fragrance on our way,
Thy fruit our heavenly food.
Entrance to paradise,
Strength of all faithful souls;
The Church's fortress when the foe
His banner grim unrolls.
By thee the curse is gone,
And death no terror brings;
We cast his power beneath our feet,
And rise to heavenly things.
O shield of our defence,
And foe of all our foes;
The glory of the saints of God,
Their crown for all their woes.
Who follow Christ the Lord,
Their beauty find in thee;
Their harbour of salvation thou,
Now and eternally.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum Bb and sing d r m f s up from it, so the whole choir has the key in their ears before you start.
- Pitch the first note. The tune starts on l, (G), on the word “All”, as a pickup before the first full bar.
- Count the time. 4/4 means four crotchet beats in each bar. In the grid every cell is half a crotchet: a dash (–) holds the note before it, and _ is a rest.
- Know the notes. The tune uses d r m f s l t. A comma after a note (s,) is the octave below; an apostrophe (d') is the octave above.
New to solfa? Read how to read Tonic Solfa and how to find the doh of a song.
About the hymn
John Brownlie translated these words from the Greek service books for Hymns from the Greek Office Books (Paisley, 1904), headed “Stichera”.
The book printed the words without tunes. They are in Short Metre (6.6.8.6), and this page sets them to ST. BRIDE; any other Short Metre tune fits them as well.
- Words: Traditional Greek
- Translated (1904): John Brownlie (1857–1925)
- Music (1762): Samuel Howard (died undefined)
Tune ST. BRIDE by Samuel Howard (died undefined); words by Traditional Greek; translated by John Brownlie (1857–1925).
Sung to the same tune: Behold What Wondrous Grace, Exalt the Lord Our God, Here, in This Place of Prayer, How Blest the Righteous Are, In Weariness and Pain, Let God the Maker's Name, Let Party Names No More, Let Sinners Take Their Course, Lord What a Feeble Piece, My Saviour and My King, My Soul, Repeat His Praise, Not with Our Mortal Eyes, Now Let Our Voices Join, O Blessed Souls Are They, O Lord, Our Heavenly King, One Sweetly Solemn Thought, Out of the Deep I Call, Raise Your Triumphant Songs, Servants of Christ, Arise, Teach Me, My God and King, The Man Is Ever Blest, The Saviour Gently Calls, The Spirit, in Our Hearts, Thy Love Hath Sweetened Me, We Love This Outward World, When Man Grows Bold in Sin, Where Shall the Man Be Found, Who Has Believ'd Thy Word, Ye Servants of the Lord.
Questions about All Hail, Life-bearing Cross
What is the doh of All Hail, Life-bearing Cross?
In this version, in G minor, doh is Bb. If your choir sings it in another key, doh moves to the new key note and every solfa syllable stays the same — that is what movable doh means.
What note does All Hail, Life-bearing Cross start on?
It starts on l, (G in G minor), a pickup on the word “All” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to l,.
Is All Hail, Life-bearing Cross in the public domain?
Yes. John Brownlie died in 1925, Samuel Howard died in undefined; the words were in print by 1904 and the music in 1762. Everyone named died before 1955 and both were published before 1929, so the hymn is out of copyright in the UK, the EU, the United States and Nigeria. Modern arrangements and translations can still be under copyright.