Let Hearts and Tongues Unite in Tonic Solfa
Let Hearts and Tongues Unite in Tonic Solfa to SOUTHWELL, doh is Ab: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 9 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| l,Let- | dhearts-dand-t,tongues-t,u-- | l,nite-----dAnd- |
| dloud-dthanks--rgiv--rings- | mraise;-----m'Tis- |
| sdu--sty,-fmin--fgled- | mwith-mde--rlight,-mThe- |
| rSa--dvior's-t,name-t,to- | l,praise.----- |
Got your choir's recording? Get it in solfa →
Download the solfa (PDF)A4, free to print and share with your choir
- Key
- F minor
- Doh
- Ab
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- l, (F)
- Range
- l, to s (F to E♭, a seventh)
- Tune
- SOUTHWELL
- Words
- John Newton
- Music
- From William Daman's Psalter, 1579
Melody from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune SOUTHWELL (From William Daman's Psalter, 1579); words by John Newton (1725–1807). 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 Ab · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in F minor, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Let hearts and tongues unite
And loud thanksgivings raise;
'Tis duty, mingled with delight,
The Savior's name to praise.
To him we owe our breath,
He took us from the womb,
Which else had shut us up in death,
And proved an early tomb.
When on the breast we hung
Our help was in the Lord;
'Twas he first taught our infant tongue
To form the lisping word.
When in our blood we lay
He would not let us die,
Because his love had fixed a day
To bring salvation nigh.
In childhood and in youth
His eye was on us still;
Though strangers to his love and truth,
And prone to cross his will.
And since his name we knew,
How gracious has he been!
What dangers has he led us through,
What mercies have we seen!
Now through another year
Supported by his care;
We raise our Ebenezer here,
"The Lord has helped thus far."
Our lot in future years
Unable to foresee
He, kindly to prevent our fears,
Says, "Leave it all to me."
Yea, Lord, we wish to cast
Our cares upon thy breast!
Help us to praise thee for the past,
And trust thee for the rest.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum Ab 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 l, (F), 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
John Newton wrote these words. They were printed in Olney Hymns (London, 1779), Book II, hymn 42, “Ebenezer 1Sam 7:12”.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Short Metre (6.6.8.6), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to SOUTHWELL; any other Short Metre tune fits them as well.
- Words: John Newton (1725–1807)
- Melody (1579): From William Daman's Psalter, 1579
Melody from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune SOUTHWELL (From William Daman's Psalter, 1579); words by John Newton (1725–1807). 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: Along My Earthly Way, And Must This Body Die, Arise, My Gracious God, At the Creation's Birth, Behold Th' Amazing Sight, Behold the Morning Sun, Behold the Sun, How Bright, Blest Are the Sons of Peace, Children of Light, Awake, Come to the House of Prayer, Come, Kingdom of Our God, Come, Ye Who Love the Lord, Destruction's Dangerous Road, Far as Thy Name Is Known, Father, in Whom We Live, Firm and Unmov'd Are They, From Early Dawning Light, Good Is the Heavenly King, Grace! 'Tis a Charming Sound, Great Is the Lord Our God, Here, in the Broken Bread, How Gentle God's Commands, How Honored Is the Place, In Darkness as in Light, It Is a Comely Thing, Jerusalem, Rejoice, Jesus, My Truth, My Way, Let All Our Tongues Be One, Let God the Father Live, Lord Jesus Think on Me, Lord of the Harvest, Hear, My God, My Life, My Love, My God, Permit My Tongue, My Spirit on Thy Care, O Lord, How Vile Am I, O Spirit, Freed from Earth, O, Where Shall Rest Be Found, Our Heavenly Father, Hear, Religion Can Assuage, Stand Up and Bless the Lord, Sure There's a Righteous God, The God Jehovah Reigns, The Law by Moses Came, The Time Is Drawing Near, The Word of Christ, Our Lord, Thou Seest My Feebleness, To Christ Th' Anointed King, To Thee, O God in Heaven, We Give Thee but Thine Own.
Questions about Let Hearts and Tongues Unite
What is the doh of Let Hearts and Tongues Unite?
In this version, in F minor, doh is Ab. 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 Hearts and Tongues Unite start on?
It starts on l, (F in F minor), a pickup on the word “Let” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to l,.
Is Let Hearts and Tongues Unite in the public domain?
Yes. John Newton died in 1807; the words were in print by 1779 and the music in 1579. 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.