Christ Arose in Tonic Solfa
Christ Arose in Tonic Solfa: the solfa line by line with the words, staff notation, all 4 verses, and a piano to sing along with.
- Key
- C major
- Doh
- C
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- s (G)
- Range
- d to f' (C to F)
- Tune
- CHRIST AROSE
- Words
- Robert Lowry
- Music
- Robert Lowry
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune CHRIST AROSE by Robert Lowry (1826–1899); words by Robert Lowry (1826–1899). Sources and licences.
The solfa with the words
| sLow---sin-lthe- | lgrave-sHe-slay--- |
| sJe----fsus-lmy- | lSa----svior!--- |
| lWait----ting-d'the- | d'co--sming-sday‑--- |
| lJe----ssus-femy- | sLord!------- |
| dUp-dfrom-,dthemgrave-sHe-,sa- | d'rose,-----d'With-,r'a |
| m'might--d'y-r'tri--,d'umphto'er-,lHis | sfoes;-----tHe-,d'a- |
| r'rose-r'a-r'Vic--,d'torr'from-,m'the | d'dark-ldo--smain,-sAnd-,sHe |
| llives-lfor--lev--,r'err'with-,d'His | tsaints-d'to-r'reign.-sHe-,sa- |
| m'rose!-----r'He-,d'a- | f'rose!-----m'Hal--,r'le- |
| d'lu--sjah!-m'Christ-r'a-- | d'rose!------- |
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 C · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in C major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Low in the grave He lay Jesus my Savior!
Waiting the coming day— Jesus my Lord!
Up from the grave He arose,
With a mighty triumph o'er His
Refrain
foes; He arose a Victor from the dark domain,
And He lives forever with His saints to reign.
He arose! He arose!
Hallelujah!
Christ arose!
Vainly they watch His bed— Jesus my Savior!
Vainly they seal the dead— Jesus my Lord!
Death cannot keep his prey— Jesus my Savior!
He tore the bars away— Jesus my Lord!
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum C 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 s (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. A cell split by a comma holds two quarter beats: d -,r is a dotted quaver and a semiquaver, d,r two semiquavers. That comma sits between two syllables; an octave mark sits small and low against its own letter (s,).
- 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
The words are by Robert Lowry, first published in 1874. The tune, CHRIST AROSE, is by Robert Lowry (1874). This version of the melody and the words comes from the Open Hymnal Project.
- Words (1874): Robert Lowry (1826–1899)
- Music (1874): Robert Lowry (1826–1899)
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune CHRIST AROSE by Robert Lowry (1826–1899); words by Robert Lowry (1826–1899). 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.
Questions about Christ Arose
What is the doh of Christ Arose?
In this version, in C major, doh is C. 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 Christ Arose start on?
It starts on s (G in C major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to s.
Is Christ Arose in the public domain?
Yes. Robert Lowry died in 1899, Robert Lowry died in 1899; the words were first published in 1874 and the music in 1874. 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.