Jesu, My Advocate Above in Tonic Solfa
Jesu, My Advocate Above in Tonic Solfa to SWEET HOUR, doh is Db: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 4 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| dJe- | msu,-fmysAd--svo- | lcate-ta-d'bove,-lMy | sfriend-mbe-mforer_dthe | rthrone-mofrlove,-dIf |
| mnow-fforsme-spre- | lvails-tthyd'prayer,-lIf | snow-mImfindr_dthee | mplead--ringdthere,-sIf |
| d'thou-tthed'se--lcret | swish-mcon-svey,-sAnd | d'sweet--tlyd'prompt-lmy | sheart-mtorpray;-dHear, |
| mand-fmysweak-spe- | lti--ttionsd'join,-lAl- | smight--mymAd-r_dvo- | mcate,-rtodthine.- |
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- Key
- Db major
- Doh
- Db
- Time
- 6/8
- Starts on
- d (D♭)
- Range
- d to d' (D♭ to D♭, an octave)
- Tune
- SWEET HOUR
- Words
- Charles Wesley, John Wesley
Tune SWEET HOUR by William Batchelder Bradbury (1816–1868); words by Charles Wesley (1707–1788) or John Wesley (1703–1791). 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 Db · 6/8
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in Db major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Jesu, my Advocate above,
My friend before the throne of love,
If now for me prevails thy prayer,
If now I find thee pleading there,
If thou the secret wish convey,
And sweetly prompt my heart to pray;
Hear, and my weak petitions join,
Almighty Advocate, to thine.
Fain would I know my utmost ill,
And groan my nature's weight to feel,
To feel the clouds that round me roll,
The night that hangs upon my soul,
The darkness of my carnal mind,
My will perverse, my passions blind,
Scattered o'er all the earth abroad,
Immeasurably far from God.
Jesu, my heart's desire obtain!
My earnest suit present, and gain;
My fulness of corruption show,
The knowledge of myself bestow;
A deeper displacence at sin,
A sharper sense of hell within,
A stronger struggling to get free,
A keener appetite for thee.
O sovereign Love, to thee I cry,
Give me thyself, or else I die!
Save me from death, from hell set free,
Death, hell, are but the want of thee.
Quickened by thy imparted flame,
Saved, when possessed of thee, I am;
My life, my only heaven thou art,
O might I feel thee in my heart!
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum Db 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 (D♭), on the first syllable of “Jesu”, as a pickup before the first full bar.
- Count the time. 6/8 means two dotted-crotchet beats (six quavers) 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 Wesley printed these words in A Collection of Hymns for the Use of the People Called Methodists (1780), hymn 100. They first appeared in a book he and his brother Charles published together, and the Collection's own index cannot say which of the two wrote them.
The book printed the words without tunes. They are in Long Metre Double (8.8.8.8.8.8.8.8), and this page sets them to SWEET HOUR; any other Long Metre Double tune fits them as well.
- Words: Charles Wesley (1707–1788)
- Words: John Wesley (1703–1791)
- Music (1861): William Batchelder Bradbury (1816–1868)
Tune SWEET HOUR by William Batchelder Bradbury (1816–1868); words by Charles Wesley (1707–1788) or John Wesley (1703–1791).
Sung to the same tune: Arm These Thy Soldiers, Mighty Lord, Eternal, Spotless Lamb of God, How Shall We Praise Thee, Lord of Light, Lamp of Our Feet! Whose Hallowed Beam, O Holy Father! 'Mid the Calm, Sweet Hour of Prayer, The Spacious Firmament on High, Though Sore Beset with Guilt and Fear, When Dread Misfortune's Tempests Rise.
Questions about Jesu, My Advocate Above
What is the doh of Jesu, My Advocate Above?
In this version, in Db major, doh is Db. 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 Jesu, My Advocate Above start on?
It starts on d (D♭ in Db major), a pickup on the first syllable of “Jesu” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is Jesu, My Advocate Above in the public domain?
Yes. Charles Wesley died in 1788, John Wesley died in 1791, William Batchelder Bradbury died in 1868; the words were in print by 1780 and the music in 1861. 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.