Broken Are the Bands That Bound Us in Tonic Solfa
Broken Are the Bands That Bound Us in Tonic Solfa to STABAT MATER (MAINZ), doh is F: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 4 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| dBro--rken-mare-rthe- | mbands-sthat-fbound-mus,- |
| mSpoiled-rare-dSa--t,tan’s- | l,realms-t,a--l,round-s,us,- |
| rAnd-dto-rjoys-msu-- | rper---dnaldnow,--- |
| dChrist-rre--mturns-rwith- | mhosts-sat--ftend--ming,- |
| mAnd,-ras-dwhen-t,at- | l,first-t,de--l,scend--s,ing,- |
| rAn--dgel-rguards-mtheir- | rhom---dagedbow.--- |
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- Key
- F major
- Doh
- F
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (F)
- Range
- s, to s (C to C, an octave)
- Tune
- STABAT MATER (MAINZ)
- Words
- Traditional Latin, John Brownlie
- Music
- Gesangbuch, Mainz
Tune STABAT MATER (MAINZ) (Gesangbuch, Mainz); words by Traditional Latin; 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 F · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in F major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Broken are the bands that bound us,
Spoiled are Satan’s realms around us,
And to joys supernal now,
Christ returns with hosts attending,
And, as when at first descending,
Angel guards their homage bow.
Far above the stars ascending,
Faith alone His course attending,
Passing now from mortal sight;
To His hand all power is given,
One with God He rules in heaven,
One in honour and in might.
Victor on His throne uplifted,
See all rule to Him is gifted,
O’er Creation’s wide domain.
Now for evermore He liveth,
Nevermore His life He giveth—
Once the sacrifice was slain.
Once He wore our flesh in weakness,
Once He suffered, once in meekness
Gave Himself for sin to die.
Now no longer pain He knoweth:
Perfect peace for ever floweth,
Perfect joy is ever nigh.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum F 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 (F).
- 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 Latin hymns of the early Church for Hymns of the Early Church (London, 1896), where he gives them as “By Adam of St. Victor”, headed “Postquam Hostem Et Inferna”.
The book printed the words without tunes. They are in 8.8.7.8.8.7, and this page sets them to STABAT MATER (MAINZ); any other 8.8.7.8.8.7 tune fits them as well.
- Words: Traditional Latin
- Translated (1896): John Brownlie (1857–1925)
- Melody (1661): Gesangbuch, Mainz
Tune STABAT MATER (MAINZ) (Gesangbuch, Mainz); words by Traditional Latin; translated by John Brownlie (1857–1925).
Sung to the same tune: Let Us Tune Our Hearts and Voices.
Questions about Broken Are the Bands That Bound Us
What is the doh of Broken Are the Bands That Bound Us?
In this version, in F major, doh is F. 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 Broken Are the Bands That Bound Us start on?
It starts on d (F in F major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is Broken Are the Bands That Bound Us in the public domain?
Yes. John Brownlie died in 1925; the words were in print by 1896 and the music in 1661. 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.