Before Elisha's Gate in Tonic Solfa
Before Elisha's Gate in Tonic Solfa to DARWALL, doh is D: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 7 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| dBe-- | mfore-dEl--si--msha's- | d'gate-----tThe- |
| lSyr--sian-fle--mper- | rstood;-----rBut- |
| mcould-dnot-lbrook-sto- | fewait,-rHe-r'deemed-d'him-- |
| tself---ltoo--- | sgood:-----sHe- |
| lthought---tthe--- | d'pro------dphet- |
| rwould-mat--ftend,-sAnd- | lnot-tto-d'him-r'a- |
| d'mes----tsage--- | d'send.----- |
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- Key
- D major
- Doh
- D
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (D)
- Range
- d to r' (D to E, a ninth)
- Tune
- DARWALL
- Words
- John Newton
- Music
- John Darwall
Melody from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune DARWALL by John Darwall (1731–1789); words by John Newton (1725–1807). 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 D · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in D major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Before Elisha's gate
The Syrian leper stood;
But could not brook to wait,
He deemed himself too good:
He thought the prophet would attend,
And not to him a message send.
Have I this journey come,
And will he not be seen?
I were as well at home,
Would washing make me clean:
Why must I wash in Jordan's flood?
Damascus' rivers are as good.
Thus by his foolish pride
He almost missed a cure;
Howe'er at length he tried,
And found the method sure:
Soon as his pride was brought to yield,
The leprosy was quickly healed.
Leprous and proud as he,
To Jesus thus I came,
From sin to set me free,
When first I heard his fame:
Surely, thought I, my pompous train
Of vows and tears will notice gain.
My heart devised the way
Which I supposed he'd take;
And when I found delay,
Was ready to go back:
Had he some painful task enjoined,
I to performance seemed inclined.
When by his word he spake,
That fountain opened see;
'Twas opened for thy sake,
Go wash, and thou art free:"
O! how did my proud heart gainsay,
I feared to trust this simple way.
At length I trial made,
When I had much endured;
The message I obeyed,
I washed, and I was cured:
Sinners this healing fountain try,
Which cleansed a wretch so vile as I.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum D 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 (D), on the first syllable of “Before”, 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 and the chromatic fe. 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 Newton wrote these words. They were printed in Olney Hymns (London, 1779), Book I, hymn 38, “Naaman. 2Ki 5:14”.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Hallelujah Metre (6.6.6.6.8.8), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to DARWALL; any other Hallelujah Metre tune fits them as well.
- Words: John Newton (1725–1807)
- Music (1770): John Darwall (1731–1789)
Melody from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune DARWALL by John Darwall (1731–1789); words by John Newton (1725–1807). The Open Hymnal Project publishes this tune 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: A Worldling Spent Each Day, All, from the Sun's Uprise, Amazing, Beauteous Change, Encouraged by Thy Word, Hark! What Celestial Notes, I Have No Tears to Shed, Israel in Ancient Days, Lord of the Worlds Above, On What Has Now Been Sown, Rejoice, the Lord Is King, Thou Fount of Love and Grace, To Thee, Our God, We Fly, Ye Realms Below the Skies, Young Men and Maidens, Raise.
Questions about Before Elisha's Gate
What is the doh of Before Elisha's Gate?
In this version, in D major, doh is D. 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 Before Elisha's Gate start on?
It starts on d (D in D major), a pickup on the first syllable of “Before” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is Before Elisha's Gate in the public domain?
Yes. John Newton died in 1807, John Darwall died in 1789; the words were in print by 1779 and the music in 1770. 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.