Men! Whose Boast It Is That Ye in Tonic Solfa
Men! Whose Boast It Is That Ye in Tonic Solfa to MARTYN, doh is F: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 3 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| mMen!---mwhose-mboast---dit- | ris---rthat-rye----- |
| mCome---mof-sfa----fthers- | mbrave-----rand----- |
| dfree,----------- | mIf---mthere-mbreathe---don- |
| rearth---ra-rslave,----- | mAre---mye-stru----fly- |
| mfree-----rand----- | dbrave?----------- |
| sIf---sye-sdo---snot- | lfeel-----lthe----- |
| schain,----------- | sWhen---sit-sworks---sa- |
| lbroth------ler's----- | spain,----------- |
| mAre---mye-mnot---dbase- | rslaves---rin--rdeed,----- |
| mSlaves---mun--swor----fthy- | mto-----rbe----- |
| dfreed?----------- |
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- Key
- F major
- Doh
- F
- Time
- 6/4
- Starts on
- m (A)
- Range
- d to l (F to D, a sixth)
- Tune
- MARTYN
- Words
- James Russell Lowell
- Music
- Simeon B. Marsh
Tune MARTYN by Simeon B. Marsh (died undefined); words by James Russell Lowell (1819–1891). 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 F · 6/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in F major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Men! whose boast it is that ye
Come of fathers brave and free,
If there breathe on earth a slave,
Are ye truly free and brave?
If ye do not feel the chain,
When it works a brother's pain,
Are ye not base slaves indeed,
Slaves unworthy to be freed?
Is true freedom but to break
Fetters for our own dear sake,
And with leathern hearts forget
That we owe mankind a debt?
No! true freedom is to share
All the chains our brothers wear,
And with heart and hand to be
Earnest to make others free.
They are slaves, who fear to speak
For the fallen and the weak;
They are slaves, who will not choose
Hatred, scoffing, and abuse,
Rather than, in silence, shrink
From the truth they needs must think;
They are slaves, who dare not be
In the right with two or three.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum F 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 m (A).
- Count the time. 6/4 means six crotchet beats (two dotted minims) 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. 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
James Russell Lowell 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 437, “Anti-Slavery Hymn”.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Sevens Double (7.7.7.7.7.7.7.7), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to MARTYN; any other Sevens Double tune fits them as well.
- Words: James Russell Lowell (1819–1891)
- Music (1834): Simeon B. Marsh (died undefined)
Tune MARTYN by Simeon B. Marsh (died undefined); words by James Russell Lowell (1819–1891).
Sung to the same tune: Christ, by Heav’nly Hosts Adored, God, from Whom All Blessings Flow, Light of Life, Seraphic Fire, Omnipresent God! Whose Aid, Other Ground Can No Man Lay, Pensive, Doubting, Fearful Heart, Saved by Blood I Live to Tell, See the Gloomy Gath'ring Cloud, See! Another Year Is Gone, Though the Morn May Be Serene, Time, with an Unwearied Hand.
Questions about Men! Whose Boast It Is That Ye
What is the doh of Men! Whose Boast It Is That Ye?
In this version, in F major, doh is F. 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 Men! Whose Boast It Is That Ye start on?
It starts on m (A in F major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to m.
Is Men! Whose Boast It Is That Ye in the public domain?
Yes. James Russell Lowell died in 1891, Simeon B. Marsh died in undefined; the words were in print by 1848 and the music in 1834. 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.