Hark! What Mean Those Holy Voices in Tonic Solfa
Hark! What Mean Those Holy Voices in Tonic Solfa to STUTTGART, doh is G: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 6 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| s,Hark!-s,what-dmean-dthose- | rho--rly-mvoi--dces- |
| sSweet--sly-lsound--fing- | rthrough-sthe-mskies?--- |
| mLo!-mth’an--rgel--mic- | dhost-rre--djoi--t,ces,- |
| dHeav--l,enly-s,hal--dle-- | dlu--t,jahs-drise.--- |
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- Key
- G major
- Doh
- G
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- s, (D)
- Range
- s, to l (D to E, a ninth)
- Tune
- STUTTGART
- Words
- John Cawood
- Music
- Psalmodia Sacra, Gotha, Christian F. Witt, Johann G. C. Storl, Henry John Gauntlett
Tune STUTTGART by Christian F. Witt (died 1716), Johann G. C. Storl (died 1719) and Henry John Gauntlett (1805–1876); words by John Cawood (1775–1852). 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 G · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in G major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Hark! what mean those holy voices
Sweetly sounding through the skies?
Lo! th’ angelic host rejoices,
Heavenly hallelujahs rise.
Listen to the wondrous story
Which they chant in hymns of joy,
Glory in the highest, glory!
Glory be to God most high!
Peace on earth, good will from heaven,
Reaching far as man is found;
Souls redeemed and sins forgiven!
Loud our golden harps shall sound.
Christ is born, the great Anointed;
Heaven and earth, His praises sing!
O receive whom God appointed
For your Prophet, Priest, and King.
Hasten, mortals, to adore Him,
Learn His name and taste His joy,
Till in heaven ye sing before Him,
Glory be to God most high!
Let us learn the wondrous story
Of our great Redeemer’s birth;
Spread the brightness of His glory
Till it cover all the earth.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum G 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, (D).
- 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
John Cawood wrote these words. They were printed in the Evangelical Lutheran Hymn-Book (St. Louis, 1927), as hymn 160.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Eights and Sevens (8.7.8.7), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to STUTTGART; any other Eights and Sevens tune fits them as well.
- Words: John Cawood (1775–1852)
- Melody (1715): Psalmodia Sacra, Gotha
- Music, attributed: Christian F. Witt (died 1716)
- Music, attributed: Johann G. C. Storl (died 1719)
- Arranged (1861): Henry John Gauntlett (1805–1876)
Tune STUTTGART by Christian F. Witt (died 1716), Johann G. C. Storl (died 1719) and Henry John Gauntlett (1805–1876); words by John Cawood (1775–1852).
Sung to the same tune: All Around Us, Fair with Flowers, From the Father’s Throne Descending, Onward, Christian, Though the Region, Pillows, Wet with Tears of Anguish.
Questions about Hark! What Mean Those Holy Voices
What is the doh of Hark! What Mean Those Holy Voices?
In this version, in G major, doh is G. 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 Hark! What Mean Those Holy Voices start on?
It starts on s, (D in G major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to s,.
Is Hark! What Mean Those Holy Voices in the public domain?
Yes. John Cawood died in 1852, Christian F. Witt died in 1716, Johann G. C. Storl died in 1719, Henry John Gauntlett died in 1876; the words were in print by 1927 and the music in 1715. 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.