From Heaven Above to Earth I Come in Tonic Solfa
From Heaven Above to Earth I Come in Tonic Solfa: the solfa line by line with the words, staff notation, all 15 verses, and a piano to sing along with.
- Key
- D major
- Doh
- D
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d' (D)
- Range
- d to d' (D to D, an octave)
- Tune
- VOM HIMMEL HOCH
- Words
- Martin Luther, Catherine Winkworth
- Music
- From Schumann's Geistliche Lieder, Leipzig, 1539
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune VOM HIMMEL HOCH (From Schumann's Geistliche Lieder, Leipzig, 1539); words by Martin Luther (1483–1546); translated by Catherine Winkworth (1827–1878). Sources and licences.
The solfa with the words
| d'From | tHeaven-la--tbove-sto- | learth-tI-d'come,-_d'To |
| d'bear-sgood-snews-mto- | sev--fery-mhome;-_mGlad |
| lti--ldings-sof-tgreat- | d'joy-lI-sbring,-_d'Where- |
| tof-lI-snow-swill- | fsaym_rand-dsing.- |
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 D · 4/4
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
From Heaven above to earth I come,
To bear good news to every home;
Glad tidings of great joy I bring,
Whereof I now will say and sing.
To you, this night, is born a Child
Of Mary, chosen mother mild;
This tender Child of lowly birth,
Shall be the joy of all your earth.
'Tis Christ our God, Who far on high
Had heard your sad and bitter cry;
Himself will your Salvation be,
Himself from sin will make you free.
He brings those blessings long ago
Prepared by God for all below;
That in His heavenly kingdom blest
You may with us forever rest.
These are the tokens ye shall mark,
The swaddling clothes and manger dark;
There shall ye find the young Child laid,
By Whom the heav'ns and earth were made.
Now let us all, with gladsome cheer,
Follow the shepherds, and draw near
To see this wondrous Gift of God,
Who hath His own dear Son bestowed.
Give heed, my heart, lift up thine eyes!
What is it in yon manger lies?
Who is this Child, so young and fair?
The blessèd Christ Child lieth there!
Welcome to earth, Thou noble Guest,
Through Whom e'en wicked men are blest!
Thou com'st to share our misery,
What can we render, Lord, to Thee!
Ah, Lord, Who hast created all,
How hast Thou made Thee weak and small,
To lie upon the coarse dry grass,
The food of humble ox and ass.
Were earth a thousand times as fair,
Beset with gold and jewels rare,
She yet were far too poor to be
A narrow cradle, Lord, for Thee.
For velvets soft and silken stuff
Thou hast but hay and straw so rough,
Whereon Thou King, so rich and great,
As 'twere Thy heaven, art throned in state.
Thus hath it pleased Thee to make plain
The truth to us, poor fools and vain,
That this world's honor, wealth and might
Are naught and worthless in Thy sight.
Ah, dearest Jesus, holy Child,
Make Thee a bed, soft, undefiled,
Here in my poor heart's inmost shrine,
That I may evermore be Thine.
My heart for very joy doth leap,
My lips no more can silence keep,
I too must sing, with joyful tongue,
That sweetest ancient cradle song.
Glory to God in highest Heaven,
Who unto man His Son hath given,
While angels sing, with pious mirth,
A glad New Year to all the earth.
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), on the word “From”, 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
The words are by Martin Luther, first published in 1535. The English translation is by Catherine Winkworth (1855). The tune, VOM HIMMEL HOCH, is from Schumann's Geistliche Lieder, Leipzig, 1539. This version of the melody and the words comes from the Open Hymnal Project.
- Words (1535): Martin Luther (1483–1546)
- Translated (1855): Catherine Winkworth (1827–1878)
- Melody (1539): From Schumann's Geistliche Lieder, Leipzig, 1539
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune VOM HIMMEL HOCH (From Schumann's Geistliche Lieder, Leipzig, 1539); words by Martin Luther (1483–1546); translated by Catherine Winkworth (1827–1878). 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.
Sung to the same tune: To Shepherds as They Watched by Night.
Questions about From Heaven Above to Earth I Come
What is the doh of From Heaven Above to Earth I Come?
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 From Heaven Above to Earth I Come start on?
It starts on d' (D in D major), a pickup on the word “From” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to d'.
Is From Heaven Above to Earth I Come in the public domain?
Yes. Martin Luther died in 1546, Catherine Winkworth died in 1878; the words were first published in 1855 and the music in 1539. 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.