Father, Breathe an Evening Blessing in Tonic Solfa
Father, Breathe an Evening Blessing in Tonic Solfa to OMNI DIE, doh is F: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 4 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| dFa--dther,- | rbreathe---dan---meve--sning- | fbless----ming---dEre-rre-- |
| mpose-sour-sspi----ferits--- | sseal;-------sSin-sand- |
| lwant---swe---fcome-mcon-- | rfes----msing;---dThou-rcanst- |
| msave-fand-rthou-----dcanst- | dheal.------- |
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- Key
- F major
- Doh
- F
- Time
- 6/4
- Starts on
- d (F)
- Range
- d to l (F to D, a sixth)
- Tune
- OMNI DIE
- Words
- James Edmeston
- Music
- Gesangbuch, Corner
Tune OMNI DIE (Gesangbuch, Corner); words by James Edmeston (1791–1867). 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 · 6/4
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
Father, breathe an evening blessing
Ere repose our spirits seal;
Sin and want we come confessing;
Thou canst save and thou canst heal.
Though destruction walk around us,
Though the arrows past us fly,
Angel guards from thee surround us;
We are safe, if thou art nigh.
Though the night be dark and dreary,
Darkness cannot hide from thee;
Thou art he who, never weary,
Watchest where thy people be.
Should swift death this night o'ertake us,
And command us to the tomb,
May the morn in heaven awake us,
Clad in bright, eternal bloom.
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), on the first syllable of “Father”, as a pickup before the first full bar.
- Count the time. 6/4 means six crotchet beats (two dotted minims) 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 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
James Edmeston wrote these words. They were printed in Hymns for Christian Devotion, compiled by John G. Adams and Edwin H. Chapin (Boston, 1846), as hymn 942 of its twenty-second edition (1853), “Confidence in God's Protection”.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Eights and Sevens (8.7.8.7), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to OMNI DIE; any other Eights and Sevens tune fits them as well.
- Words: James Edmeston (1791–1867)
- Melody (1631): Gesangbuch, Corner
Tune OMNI DIE (Gesangbuch, Corner); words by James Edmeston (1791–1867).
Sung to the same tune: "Come Who Will," the Voice from Heaven, Christ, for Thee a Wreath Adorning, Cross, Reproach, and Tribulation, Go in Peace! — Serene Dismission, Jesus, Thou Art Mine Forever, O Thou Sun of Glorious Splendor, Part in Peace! Is Day Before Us, Pastor, Thou Art from Us Taken, Praise to Thee, Thou Great Creator, We Have Heard the Wondrous Story, Where the Lord Reveals His Presence.
Questions about Father, Breathe an Evening Blessing
What is the doh of Father, Breathe an Evening Blessing?
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 Father, Breathe an Evening Blessing start on?
It starts on d (F in F major), a pickup on the first syllable of “Father” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is Father, Breathe an Evening Blessing in the public domain?
Yes. James Edmeston died in 1867; the words were in print by 1853 and the music in 1631. 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.