Glory Be to God the Father in Tonic Solfa
Glory Be to God the Father in Tonic Solfa to ST. RAPHAEL, doh is Ab: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 4 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| dGlo--dry-t,be-dto- | l,God--t,thedFa--s,ther,- |
| l,Glo--t,ry-dbe-fto- | rGod--dthedSon,--- |
| dGlo--dry-t,be-dto- | dGod-rthe-mSpir--t,it;- |
| mGreat--mJe-rho--svah,- | feThree--sinsOne!--- |
| rGlo--dry,-t,glo--s,ry,- | l,While-t,e--dter--mnal- |
| ra----rges--- | drun!------- |
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- Key
- Ab major
- Doh
- Ab
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (A♭)
- Range
- s, to s (E♭ to E♭, an octave)
- Tune
- ST. RAPHAEL
- Words
- Horatius Bonar
- Music
- Edward John Hopkins
Tune ST. RAPHAEL by Edward John Hopkins (1818–1901); words by Horatius Bonar (1808–1889). 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 Ab · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in Ab major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Glory be to God the Father,
Glory be to God the Son,
Glory be to God the Spirit;
Great Jehovah, Three in One!
Glory, glory,
While eternal ages run!
Glory be to Him who loved us,
Washed us from each spot and stain;
Glory be to Him who bought us,
Made us kings with Him to reign!
Glory, glory,
To the Lamb that once was slain!
Glory to the King of angels,
Glory to the Church’s King,
Glory to the King of nations;
Heaven and earth, your praises bring!
Glory, glory,
To the King of Glory bring!
Glory, blessing, praise eternal!
Thus the choir of angels sings;
Honor, riches, power, dominion!
Thus its praise creation brings;
Glory, glory,
Glory to the King of kings!
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum Ab 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 (A♭).
- 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 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
Horatius Bonar wrote these words. They were printed in the Evangelical Lutheran Hymn-Book (St. Louis, 1927), as hymn 268.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked 8.7.8.7.4.7, to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to ST. RAPHAEL; any other 8.7.8.7.4.7 tune fits them as well.
- Words: Horatius Bonar (1808–1889)
- Music (1862): Edward John Hopkins (1818–1901)
Tune ST. RAPHAEL by Edward John Hopkins (1818–1901); words by Horatius Bonar (1808–1889).
Sung to the same tune: Ages, Ages Have Departed, Father! at This Altar Bending.
Questions about Glory Be to God the Father
What is the doh of Glory Be to God the Father?
In this version, in Ab major, doh is Ab. 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 Glory Be to God the Father start on?
It starts on d (A♭ in Ab major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is Glory Be to God the Father in the public domain?
Yes. Horatius Bonar died in 1889, Edward John Hopkins died in 1901; the words were in print by 1927 and the music in 1862. 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.