Father, When O'er Our Trembling Hearts in Tonic Solfa
Father, When O'er Our Trembling Hearts in Tonic Solfa to ALL SAINTS, NEW, doh is Bb: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 3 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| sFa-- | mther,--fwhenso'er-d'our- | d'trem---tblingthearts-d'Doubt's- |
| r'sha--m'dows-f'gath--m'ering- | r'brood,-----r'When- |
| m'faith--r'ind'Thee-tal-- | tmost--lde-lparts,-lAnd- |
| sgloomi--d'est-tfears--d'in- | d'trude;-----d'For-- |
| d'sake-d'us-tnot,-tO- | lGod--loflgrace,-lBut- |
| ssend-sthose-sfears-sre-- | slief;-----fGrant- |
| mus--fa-sgain-d'to- | d'see--tThytface;-d'Lord,- |
| m'help-r'our-d'un--tbe-- | d'lief!----- |
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- Key
- Bb major
- Doh
- Bb
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- s (F)
- Range
- m to f' (D to E♭, a ninth)
- Tune
- ALL SAINTS, NEW
- Music
- Henry Stephen Cutler
Tune ALL SAINTS, NEW by Henry Stephen Cutler (1825–1902); words by Stephen Greenleaf Bulfinch (1809–1870). 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 Bb · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in Bb major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Father, when o'er our trembling hearts
Doubt's shadows gathering brood,
When faith in Thee almost departs,
And gloomiest fears intrude;
Forsake us not, O God of grace,
But send those fears relief;
Grant us again to see Thy face;
Lord, help our unbelief!
When sorrow comes, and joys are flown,
And fondest hopes lie dead,
And blessings, long esteemed our own,
Are now forever fled;
When the bright promise of our spring
Is but a withered leaf,
Lord, to Thy truths still let us cling;
Help Thou our unbelief!
And when the powers of nature fail
Upon the couch of pain,
Nor love nor friendship can avail
The spirit to detain;
Then, Father, be our closing eyes
Undimmed by tears of grief;
And, if a trembling doubt arise,
Help Thou our unbelief!
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum Bb 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 (F), on the first syllable of “Father”, as a pickup before the first full bar.
- 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
Stephen Greenleaf Bulfinch wrote these words. They were printed in A Book of Hymns for Public and Private Devotion, compiled by Samuel Longfellow and Samuel Johnson (Boston, 1848), as hymn 213, “Help Thou Our Unbelief”.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Common Metre Double (8.6.8.6.8.6.8.6), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to ALL SAINTS, NEW; any other Common Metre Double tune fits them as well.
- Words: Stephen Greenleaf Bulfinch (1809–1870)
- Music (1872): Henry Stephen Cutler (1825–1902)
Tune ALL SAINTS, NEW by Henry Stephen Cutler (1825–1902); words by Stephen Greenleaf Bulfinch (1809–1870).
Sung to the same tune: All Nature's Works His Praise Declare, Amid Surrounding Gloom and Waste, God of All Grace and Majesty, I Looked upon the Righteous Man, Jesus, My Master and My Lord, Lord, Soothe My Anxious, Troubled Soul, Now Gird Your Patient Loins Again, O Where Are Kings and Empires Now, O, Not Alone with Outward Sign, O, Who Shall See the Glorious Day, Oh! Not Alone with Outward Sign, Our Pathway Oft Is Wet with Tears, The Aged Sufferer Waited Long, Thy Servants in the Temple Watched, When, on Devotion's Seraph Wing.
Questions about Father, When O'er Our Trembling Hearts
What is the doh of Father, When O'er Our Trembling Hearts?
In this version, in Bb major, doh is Bb. 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, When O'er Our Trembling Hearts start on?
It starts on s (F in Bb major), a pickup on the first syllable of “Father” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to s.
Is Father, When O'er Our Trembling Hearts in the public domain?
Yes. Stephen Greenleaf Bulfinch died in 1870, Henry Stephen Cutler died in 1902; the words were in print by 1848 and the music in 1872. 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.