He Leadeth Me in Tonic Solfa
He Leadeth Me in Tonic Solfa: the solfa line by line with the words, staff notation, all 5 verses, and a piano to sing along with.
- Key
- D major
- Doh
- D
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- s (A)
- Range
- d to r' (D to E, a ninth)
- Tune
- HE LEADETH ME
- Words
- Joseph Henry Gilmore
- Music
- William Batchelder Bradbury
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune HE LEADETH ME by William Batchelder Bradbury (1816–1868); words by Joseph Henry Gilmore (1834–1918). Sources and licences.
The solfa with the words
| sHe- | mlead---rethdme,-sO- | lbless--fèd-fthought!-lO- |
| swords--mwithmheav'n--rlyd_ | mcom--mfort-rfraught!-sWhat-- |
| me'er--rIddo,-swher-- | le'er-fI-d'be-tStilll_ |
| s'tis-mGod's-mhandr_dthatr_ | mlead---rethdme.-sHe- |
| slead--d'eth-tme,-d'He- | d'lead--tethl_sme,-lBy- |
| sHis-mown-mhandr_dHer_ | mlead--meth-rme;-sHis- |
| sfaith--d'ful-tfol--r'low'r- | d'I-twouldl_sbe,-lFor- |
| sby-mHis-mhandr_dHer_ | mlead---rethdme.- |
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
He leadeth me, O blessèd thought!
O words with heav'nly comfort fraught!
Whate'er I do, where'er I be
Still 'tis God's hand that leadeth me.
Refrain
He leadeth me, He leadeth me,
By His own hand He leadeth me;
His faithful follow'r I would be,
For by His hand He leadeth me.
Sometimes mid scenes of deepest gloom,
Sometimes where Eden's bowers bloom,
By waters still, ov'r troubled sea,
Still 'tis His hand that leadeth me.
Lord, I would place my hand in Thine,
Nor ever murmur nor repine;
Content, whatever lot I see,
Since 'tis my God that leadeth me.
And when my task on earth is done,
When by Thy grace the vict'ry's won,
E'en death's cold wave I will not flee,
Since God through Jordan leadeth me.
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 s (A), on the word “He”, 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 Joseph Henry Gilmore, first published in 1862. The tune, HE LEADETH ME, is by William Batchelder Bradbury (1864). This version of the melody and the words comes from the Open Hymnal Project.
- Words (1862): Joseph Henry Gilmore (1834–1918)
- Music (1864): William Batchelder Bradbury (1816–1868)
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune HE LEADETH ME by William Batchelder Bradbury (1816–1868); words by Joseph Henry Gilmore (1834–1918). 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.
Questions about He Leadeth Me
What is the doh of He Leadeth Me?
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 He Leadeth Me start on?
It starts on s (A in D major), a pickup on the word “He” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to s.
Is He Leadeth Me in the public domain?
Yes. Joseph Henry Gilmore died in 1918, William Batchelder Bradbury died in 1868; the words were first published in 1862 and the music in 1864. 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.