Let Us, with a Gladsome Mind in Tonic Solfa
Let Us, with a Gladsome Mind in Tonic Solfa to MONKLAND: the solfa with the words, staff notation, the eight verses and the refrain, and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| d,Let-m,us,-s,with-m,a- | f,glad-s,_l,somet,_dmind,--- |
| mPraise-mthe-rLord,-dfor- | t,He-l,is-s,kind.--- |
| rFor-rHisd_t,mer--s,cies- | daye-men--rdure,--- |
| mEv--rerd_t,faith--dful,- | dev--t,er-dsure.--- |
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- Key
- Bb major
- Doh
- Bb
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d, (B♭)
- Range
- d, to m (B♭ to D, a tenth)
- Tune
- MONKLAND
- Words
- John Milton
- Music
- Moravian Melody, Geistreiches Gesangbuch, John Antes, John Bernard Wilkes
Tune MONKLAND by John Antes (died undefined) and John Bernard Wilkes (19th century); words by John Milton (1608–1674). 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 Bb · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in Bb major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Let us, with a gladsome mind,
Praise the Lord, for He is kind.
Refrain
For His mercies aye endure,
Ever faithful, ever sure.
Let us blaze His name abroad,
For of gods He is the God.
He with all commanding might
Filled the new made world with light.
He hath, with a piteous eye,
Looked upon our misery.
He the golden tressèd sun
Caused all day his course to run.
Th’hornèd moon to shine by night;
’Mid her spangled sisters bright.
All things living He doth feed,
His full hand supplies their need.
Let us, with a gladsome mind,
Praise the Lord, for He is kind.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum Bb 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, (B♭).
- 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 Milton wrote these words, a paraphrase of Psalm 136, in 1623, when he was fifteen; they were first printed in his Poems of 1645. The tune MONKLAND comes from a melody by John Antes, arranged by John Bernard Wilkes for Hymns Ancient and Modern (1861).
- Words (1623): John Milton (1608–1674)
- Melody (1704): Moravian Melody, Geistreiches Gesangbuch
- Music (1790): John Antes (died undefined)
- Arranged (1861): John Bernard Wilkes (19th century)
Tune MONKLAND by John Antes (died undefined) and John Bernard Wilkes (19th century); words by John Milton (1608–1674).
Questions about Let Us, with a Gladsome Mind
What is the doh of Let Us, with a Gladsome Mind?
In this version, in Bb major, doh is Bb. 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 Us, with a Gladsome Mind start on?
It starts on d, (B♭ in Bb major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to d,.
Is Let Us, with a Gladsome Mind in the public domain?
Yes. John Milton died in 1674, John Antes died in undefined, John Bernard Wilkes lived in the 19th century; the words were first published in 1645 and the music in 1704. 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.