Count Your Blessings in Tonic Solfa
Count Your Blessings in Tonic Solfa to BLESSINGS: the solfa with the words, staff notation, the four verses and the refrain, and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| mWhenmup-monflife’ssbil-slowssyoumare | ftem--mpest--ftossed,--- |
| rWhenmyoufaresdis-tcour-laged,sthink-fing | mall-fis-slost,--- |
| mCountmyourmman-fysbless-sings,snamemthem | fone-mby-fone,--- |
| rAndmitfwillssur-tpriselyouswhatfthe | mLord-rhas-ddone.--- |
| sCount--syourd'bless-sings,snamemthem | fone-fby-fone,--- |
| fCount--fyourtbless-lings,sseefwhat | mGod-fhas-sdone!--- |
| d'Count--d'yourtbless-lings,__ | tnametthemlonelbysone,--- |
| d'Countd'yourtman-d'ytbless-lings,sseefwhat | mGod-rhas-ddone.--- |
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- Key
- Eb major
- Doh
- Eb
- Time
- 2/2
- Starts on
- m (G)
- Range
- d to d' (E♭ to E♭, an octave)
- Tune
- BLESSINGS
- Words
- Johnson Oatman Jr.
- Music
- Edwin O. Excell
Tune BLESSINGS by Edwin O. Excell (1851–1921); words by Johnson Oatman Jr. (1856–1922). 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 Eb · 2/2
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in Eb major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
When upon life’s billows you are tempest-tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord has done.
Refrain
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God has done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your many blessings, see what God has done.
Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
And you will keep singing as the days go by.
When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;
Count your many blessings—money cannot buy
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.
So, amid the conflict whether great or small,
Do not be discouraged, God is over all;
Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum Eb 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 m (G).
- Count the time. 2/2 means two minim 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
Johnson Oatman Jr. wrote the words, first published in 1897. The tune, BLESSINGS, is by Edwin O. Excell (1897).
- Words (1897): Johnson Oatman Jr. (1856–1922)
- Music (1897): Edwin O. Excell (1851–1921)
Tune BLESSINGS by Edwin O. Excell (1851–1921); words by Johnson Oatman Jr. (1856–1922).
Questions about Count Your Blessings
What is the doh of Count Your Blessings?
In this version, in Eb major, doh is Eb. 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 Count Your Blessings start on?
It starts on m (G in Eb major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to m.
Is Count Your Blessings in the public domain?
Yes. Johnson Oatman Jr. died in 1922, Edwin O. Excell died in 1921; the words were first published in 1897 and the music in 1897. 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.