Father, Lo! We Consecrate in Tonic Solfa
Father, Lo! We Consecrate in Tonic Solfa to WATCHMAN, doh is D: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 3 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| dFa----rther,-mlo!---rwe- | mcon----fse--scrate----- |
| sUn----mto-sthee---lthis- | shouse---mand-rshrine,----- |
| dOh!---rmay-mJe----rsus- | mvis----fit-shere,----- |
| d'As---lhe-sdid---rin- | mPa----rles--dtine.----- |
| sHere---mmay-d'blind---leyes- | ssee---mhis-d'light,----- |
| sDeaf---mears-d'hear---lhis- | tac----lcents-ssweet,----- |
| mAnd---rwe,-dlike---rthose- | mgroups---fof-sold,----- |
| d'Sit---land-slin----rger- | mat---rhis-dfeet.----- |
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- Key
- D major
- Doh
- D
- Time
- 6/4
- Starts on
- d (D)
- Range
- d to d' (D to D, an octave)
- Tune
- WATCHMAN
- Words
- Edwin Hubbell Chapin
- Music
- Lowell Mason
Tune WATCHMAN by Lowell Mason (1792–1872); words by Edwin Hubbell Chapin (1814–1880). 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 · 6/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in D major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Father, lo! we consecrate
Unto thee this house and shrine,
Oh! may Jesus visit here,
As he did in Palestine.
Here may blind eyes see his light,
Deaf ears hear his accents sweet,
And we, like those groups of old,
Sit and linger at his feet.
And to learn of faith and love,
Strong in sorrow, pain and loss,
May we come and find them here,
In the garden, on the cross.
Like the spices that enfold
Him we love in rich perfume,
May our thoughts embalm him here,
While he slumbers in the tomb.
When we watch by shrouded hopes,
Weeping at death's marble door,
May the angels meet us here —
Lo! your Christ has gone before!
And while we stand "looking up,"
In our faith and wonder lost,
Here send down thy Spirit's power,
Like the tongues of Pentecost.
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).
- 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 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
Edwin Hubbell Chapin wrote these words. They were printed in Hymns for Christian Devotion, compiled by John G. Adams and Edwin H. Chapin (Boston, 1846), as hymn 699 of its twenty-second edition (1853), “The Same”.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Sevens Double (7.7.7.7.7.7.7.7), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to WATCHMAN; any other Sevens Double tune fits them as well.
- Words: Edwin Hubbell Chapin (1814–1880)
- Music (1830): Lowell Mason (1792–1872)
Tune WATCHMAN by Lowell Mason (1792–1872); words by Edwin Hubbell Chapin (1814–1880).
Sung to the same tune: Come, Thou High and Lofty Lord, Darkness Overspreads Us Here, Father, Son, and Spirit, Hear, Father! Thy Paternal Care, Gracious Lord, Our Children See, Guide Us, Lord! While, Hand in Hand, Mary to Her Savior's Tomb, Meet and Right It Is to Praise, O My God, What Must I Do, Pleasing Spring Again Is Here, Time, by Moments, Steals Away, While with Ceaseless Course the Sun.
Questions about Father, Lo! We Consecrate
What is the doh of Father, Lo! We Consecrate?
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 Father, Lo! We Consecrate start on?
It starts on d (D in D major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is Father, Lo! We Consecrate in the public domain?
Yes. Edwin Hubbell Chapin died in 1880, Lowell Mason died in 1872; the words were in print by 1853 and the music in 1830. 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.