As with Gladness Men of Old in Tonic Solfa
As with Gladness Men of Old in Tonic Solfa: the solfa line by line with the words, staff notation, all 5 verses, and a piano to sing along with.
- Key
- G major
- Doh
- G
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (G)
- Range
- s, to s (D to D, an octave)
- Tune
- DIX
- Words
- William Chatterton Dix
- Music
- Conrad Kocher, William Henry Monk
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune DIX by Conrad Kocher (1786–1872) and William Henry Monk (1823–1889); words by William Chatterton Dix (1837–1865). Sources and licences.
The solfa with the words
| dAs-t,withd_rglad--dness,- | fmen-fof-mold--- |
| l,Did-t,the-dguid--l,ing- | s,star-s,be--s,hold--- |
| dAs-t,withd_rjoy-dthey- | fhailed-fits-mlight--- |
| l,Lead--t,ing-don--l,ward,- | s,beam--s,ing-s,bright--- |
| mSo,-rmost-dglor--mious- | sLord,--fmaymwe--- |
| l,Ev--t,er--dmore-fbe- | mled-rto-dThee.--- |
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 WhatsApp message to the choir.
Doh is G · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in G major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
As with gladness, men of old
Did the guiding star behold
As with joy they hailed its light
Leading onward, beaming bright
So, most glorious Lord, may we
Evermore be led to Thee.
As with joyful steps they sped
To that lowly manger bed
There to bend the knee before
Him whom Heav'n and earth adore;
So may we with willing feet
Ever seek Thy mercy seat.
As they offered gifts most rare
At that manger rude and bare;
So may we with holy joy,
Pure and free from sin's alloy,
All our costliest treasures bring,
Christ, to Thee, our heav'nly King.
Holy Jesus, ev'ry day
Keep us in the narrow way;
And, when earthly things are past,
Bring our ransomed souls at last
Where they need no star to guide,
Where no clouds Thy glory hide.
In the heav'nly country bright,
Need they no created light;
Thou its Light, its Joy, its Crown,
Thou its Sun which goes not down;
There forever may we sing
Alleluias to our King!
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum G 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 d (G).
- 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
The words are by William Chatterton Dix, first published in 1860. The tune, DIX, is by Conrad Kocher and William Henry Monk (1838). This version of the melody and the words comes from the Open Hymnal Project.
- Words (1860): William Chatterton Dix (1837–1865)
- Melody (1838): Conrad Kocher (1786–1872)
- Adapted (1861): William Henry Monk (1823–1889)
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune DIX by Conrad Kocher (1786–1872) and William Henry Monk (1823–1889); words by William Chatterton Dix (1837–1865). The Open Hymnal Project publishes this hymn as public domain; NoteFusion's engine wrote the solfa from its notes. The melody has not yet been checked against a printed hymn book.
Sung to the same tune: For the Beauty of the Earth.
Questions about As with Gladness Men of Old
What is the doh of As with Gladness Men of Old?
In this version, in G major, doh is G. 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 As with Gladness Men of Old start on?
It starts on d (G in G major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is As with Gladness Men of Old in the public domain?
Yes. William Chatterton Dix died in 1865, Conrad Kocher died in 1872, William Henry Monk died in 1889; the words were first published in 1860 and the music in 1838. Everyone named died before 1955 and both were published before 1929, so the hymn is out of copyright in Nigeria, the UK, the EU and the United States. Modern arrangements and translations can still be under copyright.