Let Every Creature Join in Tonic Solfa
Let Every Creature Join in Tonic Solfa to FRANCONIA, doh is Eb: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 16 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| dLet- | rev--mery-fcrea--sture- | mjoin-----sTo- |
| lpraise-d'th'e--fter--mnal- | rGod;-----sYe- |
| d'heav--tenly-lhosts,-sthe- | lsong-lbe--sgin,-sAnd- |
| dsound-mhis-rName-ra-- | dbroad.----- |
Got your choir's recording? Get it in solfa →
Download the solfa (PDF)A4, free to print and share with your choir
- Key
- Eb major
- Doh
- Eb
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (E♭)
- Range
- d to d' (E♭ to E♭, an octave)
- Tune
- FRANCONIA
- Words
- Isaac Watts
Melody from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune FRANCONIA by Johann Balthasar König (1691–1758); words by Isaac Watts (1674–1748). 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 Eb · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in Eb major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Let every creature join
To praise th' eternal God;
Ye heavenly hosts, the song begin,
And sound his Name abroad.
Thou sun with golden beams,
And moon with paler rays;
Ye starry lights, ye twinkling flames,
Shine to your Maker's praise.
He built those worlds above,
And fix'd their wondrous frame;
By his command they stand or move,
And ever speak his Name.
Ye vapours, when ye rise,
Or fall in showers, or snow,
Ye thunders, murmuring round the skies,
His power and glory show.
Wind, hail, and flashing fire,
Agree to praise the Lord,
When ye in dreadful storms conspire
To execute his word.
By all his works above
His honours be exprest;
But saints that taste his saving love
Should sing his praises best.
Let earth and ocean know
They owe their Maker praise;
Praise him, ye watery worlds below,
And monsters of the seas.
From mountains near the sky
Let his high praise resound,
From humble shrubs and cedars high,
And vales and fields around.
Ye lions of the wood,
And tamer beasts that graze,
Ye live upon his daily food,
And he expects your praise.
Ye birds of lofty wing,
On high his praises bear;
Or sit on flowery boughs, and sing
Your Maker's glory there.
Ye creeping ants and worms,
His various wisdom show,
And flies, in all your shining swarms,
Praise him that drest you so.
By all the earth-born race
His honours be exprest;
But saints that know his heavenly grace
Should learn to praise him best.
Monarchs of wide command,
Praise ye th' eternal King;
Judges, adore that sovereign hand
Whence all your honours spring.
Let vigorous youth engage
To sound his praises high;
While growing babes, and withering age,
Their feebler voices try.
United zeal be shown,
His wondrous fame to raise;
God is the Lord: his name alone
Deserves our endless praise.
Let nature join with art,
And all pronounce him blest;
But saints that dwell so near his heart,
Should sing his praises best.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum Eb 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 (E♭), on the word “Let”, 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
Isaac Watts wrote these words for The Psalms of David Imitated in the Language of the New Testament (1719): Psalm 148, part 3, headed “Universal praise”.
Watts' psalms were printed without tunes and sung to any tune of their metre, Short Metre (6.6.8.6). This page sets the words to FRANCONIA; any other Short Metre tune fits them as well.
- Words (1719): Isaac Watts (1674–1748)
- Music (1738): Johann Balthasar König (1691–1758)
Melody from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune FRANCONIA by Johann Balthasar König (1691–1758); words by Isaac Watts (1674–1748). The Open Hymnal Project publishes this tune as public domain; NoteFusion's engine wrote the solfa from its notes. The melody has not yet been checked against a printed hymn book.
Sung to the same tune: "No More, on Earth No More, Behold the Lofty Sky, Blest Are the Pure in Heart, Come, All Harmonious Tongues, Father, This Slumber Shake, Forever with the Lord, From Egypt Lately Freed, Glad Was My Heart to Hear, God, Who Is Just and Kind, How Sweet to Bless the Lord, How Swift the Torrent Rolls, Jesus Invites His Friends, Jesus, the Friend of Man, My Father! Cheering Name, O! Know Ye Not That Ye, Our Heavenly Father Calls, Our Lord, Who Knows Full Well, Saviour, Thy Law We Love, Shall Wisdom Cry Aloud, The Lord on High Proclaims, The Year Begins with Thee, This Soul Reviving Wine, To God the Only Wise, Well, the Redeemer's Gone, Within the Father's House.
Questions about Let Every Creature Join
What is the doh of Let Every Creature Join?
In this version, in Eb major, doh is Eb. 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 Let Every Creature Join start on?
It starts on d (E♭ in Eb major), a pickup on the word “Let” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is Let Every Creature Join in the public domain?
Yes. Isaac Watts died in 1748, Johann Balthasar König died in 1758; the words were first published in 1719 and the music in 1738. 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.