Hear What God the Lord Hath Spoken in Tonic Solfa

Hear What God the Lord Hath Spoken in Tonic Solfa to LUX EOI, doh is D: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 3 verses and a piano.

The solfa with the words

Doh is D4/4

sHear--swhatd'God-sthe-

sLord-fhath-fspo--mken,-

lO-lmy-speo--mple,-

rfaint-dand-rfew;---

sCom---sfort-d'less,-d'a--

tfflic--lted,-r'bro--sken,-

feFair-ma--rbodes-sI-

sbuild-fefor-syou:---

fThemes-fof-mheart-mfelt-

ltri---lbu-lla--setion-

lShall-tno-d'more-tper--

mplex-seyour-lways;---

sYou-d'shall-m'name-r'your-

d'walls,-tSal--lva--stion,-

saAnd-fyour-mgates-lshall-

dall-rbe-dpraise.---

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Key: D major
Doh: D
Time: 4/4
Starts on: s (A)
Range: d to m' (D to F♯, a tenth)
Tune: LUX EOI
Words: William Cowper
Music: Arthur Seymour Sullivan

Tune LUX EOI by Arthur Seymour Sullivan (1842–1900); words by William Cowper (1731–1800). 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 D · 4/4

| s - - s d' - s - Hear what God the| s - f - f - m - |Lord hath spoken,

| l - l - s - m - O my people,| r - d - r - - - |faint and few;

| s - - s d' - d' - Comfortless, a-| t - l - r' - s - |fflicted, broken,

| fe - m - r - s - Fair abodes I| s - fe - s - - - |build for you:

| f - f - m - m - Themes of heart felt| l - - l l - se - |tribulation

| l - t - d' - t - Shall no more per-| m - se - l - - - |plex your ways;

| s - d' - m' - r' - You shall name your| d' - t - l - s - |walls, Salvation,

| sa - f - m - l - And your gates shall| d - r - d - - - |all be praise.

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

Hear what God the Lord hath spoken,
O my people, faint and few;
Comfortless, afflicted, broken,
Fair abodes I build for you:
Themes of heart-felt tribulation
Shall no more perplex your ways;
You shall name your walls, Salvation,
And your gates shall all be praise.

There, like streams that feed the garden,
Pleasures, without end, shall flow;
For the Lord, your faith rewarding,
All his bounty shall bestow:
Still in undisturbed possession,
Peace and righteousness shall reign;
Never shall you feel oppression,
Hear the voice of war again.

Ye no more your suns descending,
Waning moons no more shall see,
But your griefs, for ever ending,
Find eternal noon in me:
God shall rise, and shining o'er you,
Change to day the gloom of night;
He, the Lord, shall be your glory,
God your everlasting light.

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).
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 se sa. 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

William Cowper wrote these words. They were printed in Olney Hymns (London, 1779), Book I, hymn 65, “The future peace and glory of the church. Isa 60:15-20”.

The book printed the words without tunes, marked Eights and Sevens Double (8.7.8.7.8.7.8.7), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to LUX EOI; any other Eights and Sevens Double tune fits them as well.

Words: William Cowper (1731–1800)
Music (1874): Arthur Seymour Sullivan (1842–1900)

Tune LUX EOI by Arthur Seymour Sullivan (1842–1900); words by William Cowper (1731–1800).

Sung to the same tune: As in Solemn Congregation, Christ the Word! Thine Incarnation, Come, Thou All-inspiring Spirit, Could the Creatures Help or Ease Us, Holy Father, Thou Hast Taught Me, In the Name Which Earth and Heaven, Jesus, I My Cross Have Taken, Legion Was My Name by Nature, Let the World Despise and Leave Me, Love Divine, All Love Excelling, Mighty One, Whose Name Is Holy, Peace Be to This Habitation, We Have Met in Peace Together, Westward, Lord, the World Alluring.

Questions about Hear What God the Lord Hath Spoken

What is the doh of Hear What God the Lord Hath Spoken?

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 Hear What God the Lord Hath Spoken start on?

It starts on s (A in D major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to s.

Is Hear What God the Lord Hath Spoken in the public domain?

Yes. William Cowper died in 1800, Arthur Seymour Sullivan died in 1900; the words were in print by 1779 and the music in 1874. 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.