Blow Ye the Trumpet, Blow in Tonic Solfa

Blow Ye the Trumpet, Blow in Tonic Solfa to ST. JOHN (PARISH CHOIR), doh is D: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 3 verses and a piano.

The solfa with the words

Doh is D4/4
dBlow-mye-mthe-strum--spet,-d'blow,-----d'The-
tglad--lly-ssol--feemn-ssound;-----sLet-
lall-tthe-d'na--ltions-sknow,-----sTo-
fearth's-mre--rmo--rtest-dbound,-----dThe-
dyear-rof-mju--dbi--mlee-fis-scome;-sRe--
lturn,-tye-d'ran--d'somed-r'sin----tners,---
d'home.-------

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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
ST. JOHN (PARISH CHOIR)
Words
Augustus Montague Toplady
Music
Parish Choir

Tune ST. JOHN (PARISH CHOIR) (Parish Choir); words by Augustus Montague Toplady (1740–1778). 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

| d - Blow| m - m - s - s - ye the trumpet,| d' - - - - - d' - |blow, The
| t - l - s - fe - gladly solemn| s - - - - - s - |sound; Let
| l - t - d' - l - all the nations| s - - - - - s - |know, To
| f - m - r - r - earth's remotest| d - - - - - d - |bound, The
| d - r - m - d - year of jubi-| m - f - s - s - |lee is come; Re-
| l - t - d' - d' - turn, ye ransomed| r' - - - t - - - |sinners,
| d' - - - - - - - |home.

Staff notation

The melody on the treble staff in D major, with the first verse under the notes.

The words

Blow ye the trumpet, blow,
The gladly solemn sound;
Let all the nations know,
To earth's remotest bound,
The year of jubilee is come;
Return, ye ransomed sinners, home.

The gospel trumpet hear,
The news of pardoning grace:
Ye happy souls, draw near;
Behold your Saviour's face:
The year of jubilee is come;
Return, ye ransomed sinners, home.

Jesus, our great High Priest,
Has full assurance made;
Ye weary spirits, rest;
Ye mourning souls, be glad:
The year of jubilee is come;
Return, ye ransomed sinners, home.

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 word “Blow”, 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

Augustus Montague Toplady wrote these words. They were printed in Hymns for Christian Devotion, compiled by John G. Adams and Edwin H. Chapin (Boston, 1846), as hymn 261 of its twenty-second edition (1853), “The Jubilee Proclaimed”.

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 ST. JOHN (PARISH CHOIR); any other Hallelujah Metre tune fits them as well.

  • Words: Augustus Montague Toplady (1740–1778)
  • Melody (1851): Parish Choir

Tune ST. JOHN (PARISH CHOIR) (Parish Choir); words by Augustus Montague Toplady (1740–1778).

Sung to the same tune: Arise, My Soul, Arise, Borne on the Wings of Light, By Whom Was David Taught, Come to the Christ in Tears, Death Moves with Victor's Tread, In Loud, Exalted Strains, Lord, We Thy Will Obey, O Light That Knew No Dawn, Supported by the Word, Th’ Atoning Work Is Done, The Church a Garden Is, The Wealth of High Estate, Thou, Infinite in Love, Thy Works, Not Mine, O Christ, To Thee, Great Source of Light, What Contradictions Meet, When at Thy Feet, Oppressed.

Questions about Blow Ye the Trumpet, Blow

What is the doh of Blow Ye the Trumpet, Blow?

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 Blow Ye the Trumpet, Blow start on?

It starts on d (D in D major), a pickup on the word “Blow” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.

Is Blow Ye the Trumpet, Blow in the public domain?

Yes. Augustus Montague Toplady died in 1778; the words were in print by 1853 and the music in 1851. 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.