Jesus, While He Dwelt Below in Tonic Solfa
Jesus, While He Dwelt Below in Tonic Solfa to RATISBON (WERNER), doh is D: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 5 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| sJe--ssus,-lwhile-the- | d'dwelt-d'be--tlow,--- |
| lAs-d'di--svine-mhis-- | fto--rrians-dsay,--- |
| mTo-ma-rplace-mwould- | fof--ften-mgo,--- |
| mNear-lto-seKe--ldron's- | tbrook-tthat-llay:--- |
| d'In-lthis-splace-mhe- | floved-fto-mbe,--- |
| lAnd-l'twas-snamed-mGeth-- | rse--rma--dne.--- |
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- Key
- D major
- Doh
- D
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- s (A)
- Range
- d to d' (D to D, an octave)
- Tune
- RATISBON (WERNER)
- Words
- Robert Grant
- Music
- Werner's Choralbuch, William Henry Havergal
Tune RATISBON (WERNER) by William Henry Havergal (1793–1870); words by Robert Grant (1779–1838). 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
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
Jesus, while he dwelt below,
As divine historians say,
To a place would often go,
Near to Kedron's brook that lay:
In this place he loved to be,
And 'twas named Gethsemane.
'Twas a garden, as we read,
At the foot of Olivet,
Low and proper to be made
The Redeemer's lone retreat:
When from noise he would be free,
Then he sought Gethsemane.
Thither, by their Master brought,
His disciples likewise came;
There the heavenly truths he taught
Often set their hearts on flame:
Therefore they, as well as he,
Visited Gethsemane.
Oft conversing here they sat;
Or might join with Christ in prayer;
O, what blest devotion that,
When the Lord himself is there!
All things there did so agree
To endear Gethsemane.
Full of love to man's lost race,
On the conflict much he thought;
This he knew the destined place,
And he loved the sacred spot:
Therefore Jesus chose to be
Often in Gethsemane.
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 se. 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
Robert Grant wrote these words. They were printed in A Book of Hymns for Public and Private Devotion, compiled by Samuel Longfellow and Samuel Johnson (Boston, 1848), as hymn 452, “The Garden of Gethsemane”.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Sevens, six lines (7.7.7.7.7.7), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to RATISBON (WERNER); any other Sevens, six lines tune fits them as well.
- Words: Robert Grant (1779–1838)
- Melody (1815): Werner's Choralbuch
- Harmony (1861): William Henry Havergal (1793–1870)
Tune RATISBON (WERNER) by William Henry Havergal (1793–1870); words by Robert Grant (1779–1838).
Sung to the same tune: As the Hart, with Eager Looks, Centre of Our Hopes Thou Art, Christ, Whose Glory Fills the Skies, Ever Patient, Loving, Meek, Holy Spirit, Come with Power, It Is Finished! Glorious Word, Jesu, Shepherd of the Sheep, Jesus, I Believe Thee Near, Lamb of God, Who Bear'st Away, On Thy Church, O Power Divine, Praise to God, Immortal Praise, Quiet, Lord, My Froward Heart, Safely Through Another Week, Savior Shine and Cheer My Soul, Weary Souls, That Wander Wide, When the Parting Bosom Bleeds, Who Shall Towards Thy Chosen Seat.
Questions about Jesus, While He Dwelt Below
What is the doh of Jesus, While He Dwelt Below?
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 Jesus, While He Dwelt Below start on?
It starts on s (A in D major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to s.
Is Jesus, While He Dwelt Below in the public domain?
Yes. Robert Grant died in 1838, William Henry Havergal died in 1870; the words were in print by 1848 and the music in 1815. 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.