God of My Life, Thy Boundless Grace in Tonic Solfa
God of My Life, Thy Boundless Grace in Tonic Solfa to JUST AS I AM, doh is Ab: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 4 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| s,God-l,of-dmy- | t,life,---s,Thy- | dbound----rless- | mgrace----- |
| mChose,-mpar--mdoned,- | fand---ma-- | rdopt----ded- | t,me;----- |
| rMy-mRest,-fmy- | sHome,---mmy- | dDwell----t,ing- | l,place:----- |
| l,Fa--t,ther,-dI- | mcome---rto- | dThee.--- |
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- Key
- Ab major
- Doh
- Ab
- Time
- 3/4
- Starts on
- s, (E♭)
- Range
- s, to s (E♭ to E♭, an octave)
- Tune
- JUST AS I AM
- Words
- Charlotte Elliott
- Music
- Joseph Barnby
Tune JUST AS I AM by Joseph Barnby (1838–1896); words by Charlotte Elliott (1789–1871). 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 · 3/4
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
God of my life, Thy boundless grace
Chose, pardoned, and adopted me;
My Rest, my Home, my Dwelling-place:
Father, I come to Thee.
Jesus, my Hope, my Rock, my Shield,
Whose precious blood was shed for me,
Into Thy hands my soul I yield:
Savior, I come to Thee.
Spirit of glory and of God,
Long hast Thou deigned my Guide to be;
Now be Thy comfort sweet bestowed:
My God, I come to Thee.
I come to join that countless host
Who praise Thy name unceasingly;
Blest Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,
My God, I come to Thee.
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 s, (E♭).
- Count the time. 3/4 means three 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
Charlotte Elliott wrote these words. They were printed in the Evangelical Lutheran Hymn-Book (St. Louis, 1927), as hymn 265.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked 8.8.8.6, to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to JUST AS I AM; any other 8.8.8.6 tune fits them as well.
- Words: Charlotte Elliott (1789–1871)
- Music (1892): Joseph Barnby (1838–1896)
Tune JUST AS I AM by Joseph Barnby (1838–1896); words by Charlotte Elliott (1789–1871).
Sung to the same tune: Drawn to the Cross, Which Thou Hast Blessed, O God of Mercy, God of Might.
Questions about God of My Life, Thy Boundless Grace
What is the doh of God of My Life, Thy Boundless Grace?
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 God of My Life, Thy Boundless Grace start on?
It starts on s, (E♭ in Ab major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to s,.
Is God of My Life, Thy Boundless Grace in the public domain?
Yes. Charlotte Elliott died in 1871, Joseph Barnby died in 1896; the words were in print by 1927 and the music in 1892. 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.