Lamp of Our Feet! Whose Hallowed Beam in Tonic Solfa
Lamp of Our Feet! Whose Hallowed Beam in Tonic Solfa to SWEET HOUR, doh is Db: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 3 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| dLamp | mof-foursfeet!-swhose | lhal--tlowedd'beam-lDeep | sin-mourmheartsr_dits | rdwell--mingrhath,-dHow |
| mwel--fcomesis-sthe | lcheer--tingd'gleam-lThou | sshed--mdestmo'err_dour | mlow--rlydpath!-sLight |
| d'of-tourd'way!-lwhose | sways-maresflung-sIn | d'mer--tcyd'o'er-lour | spil--mgrimrroad,-dHow |
| mbless--fed,sits-sdark | lshades-ta-d'mong,-lThe | sstar-mthatmguidesr_dus | mto-rourdGod.- |
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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
- Anonymous
Tune SWEET HOUR by William Batchelder Bradbury (1816–1868); words by Anonymous. 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
Lamp of our feet! whose hallowed beam
Deep in our hearts its dwelling hath,
How welcome is the cheering gleam
Thou sheddest o'er our lowly path!
Light of our way! whose ways are flung
In mercy o'er our pilgrim road,
How blessed, its dark shades among,
The star that guides us to our God.
In the sweet morning's hour of prime,
Thy blessed words our lips engage,
And round our hearths at evening time
Our children spell the holy page;
The waymark through long distant years,
To guide their wandering footsteps on,
Till thy last loveliest beam appears,
Inscribed upon the churchyard stone.
Lamp of our feet! which day by day
Are passing to the quiet tomb,
If on it fall thy peaceful ray,
Our last low dwelling hath no gloom.
How beautiful their calm repose
To whom thy blessed hope is given
Whose pilgrimage on earth is closed
By the unfolding gates of heaven!
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 word “Lamp”, 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
These words were printed without an author's name in Hymns for Christian Devotion, compiled by John G. Adams and Edwin H. Chapin (Boston, 1846), as hymn 194 of its twenty-second edition (1853), “The Scriptures”.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Long Metre Double (8.8.8.8.8.8.8.8), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to SWEET HOUR; any other Long Metre Double tune fits them as well.
- Words: Anonymous
- Music (1861): William Batchelder Bradbury (1816–1868)
Tune SWEET HOUR by William Batchelder Bradbury (1816–1868); words by Anonymous.
Sung to the same tune: Arm These Thy Soldiers, Mighty Lord, Eternal, Spotless Lamb of God, How Shall We Praise Thee, Lord of Light, Jesu, My Advocate Above, 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 Lamp of Our Feet! Whose Hallowed Beam
What is the doh of Lamp of Our Feet! Whose Hallowed Beam?
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 Lamp of Our Feet! Whose Hallowed Beam start on?
It starts on d (D♭ in Db major), a pickup on the word “Lamp” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is Lamp of Our Feet! Whose Hallowed Beam in the public domain?
Yes. William Batchelder Bradbury died in 1868; the words were in print by 1853 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.