Now May Fervent Prayer Arise in Tonic Solfa
Now May Fervent Prayer Arise in Tonic Solfa to ST. BEES, doh is Ab: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 7 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| dNow-dmay-dfer---t,vent | l,prayer-t,a--drise--- |
| rWinged-rwith-mfaith,-s,and- | l,pierce-rthe-t,skies;--- |
| rFer--fvent-mprayer--dshall | t,bring-rus-ddown--- |
| dGra--rcious-dan--dswers- | dfrom--t,thedthrone.--- |
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- Key
- Ab major
- Doh
- Ab
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (A♭)
- Range
- s, to f (E♭ to D♭, a seventh)
- Tune
- ST. BEES
- Words
- John Newton
- Music
- John Bacchus Dykes
Tune ST. BEES by John Bacchus Dykes (1823–1876); 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 Ab major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Now may fervent prayer arise
Winged with faith, and pierce the skies;
Fervent prayer shall bring us down
Gracious answers from the throne.
Bless, O Lord, the op'ning year
To each soul assembled here;
Clothe thy word with pow'r divine,
Make us willing to be thine.
Shepherd of thy blood-bought sheep!
Teach the stony heart to weep;
Let the blind have eyes to see,
See themselves, and look on thee!
Let the minds of all our youth
Feel the force of sacred truth;
While the gospel-call they hear
May they learn to love and fear!
Show them what their ways have been,
Show them the desert of sin;
Then thy dying love reveal,
This shall melt a heart of steel.
Where thou hast thy work begun,
Give new strength the race to run;
Scatter darkness, doubts and fears,
Wipe away the mourners tears.
Bless us all, both old and young;
Call forth praise from every tongue;
Let the whole assembly prove
All thy pow'r, and all thy love!
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 d (A♭).
- 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 9, “Prayer for a blessing”.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Sevens (7.7.7.7), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to ST. BEES; any other Sevens tune fits them as well.
- Words: John Newton (1725–1807)
- Music (1862): John Bacchus Dykes (1823–1876)
Tune ST. BEES by John Bacchus Dykes (1823–1876); words by John Newton (1725–1807).
Sung to the same tune: 'Tis a Point I Long to Know, "Give Us Room, That We May Dwell,", Children of the Heavenly King, Father, Hear Us When We Pray, Feeble, Helpless, How Shall I, For Thy Mercy and Thy Grace, Hark! a Voice Divides the Sky, Honey Though the Bee Prepares, Let the Earth Now Praise the Lord, Lord, We Come Before Thee Now, Lord! Deliver; Thou Canst Save, Nay, I Cannot Let Thee Go, Now Let Us Come Before Him, Partners of a Glorious Hope, There's a Strife We All Must Wage, What a Mournful Life Is Mine, While the Stars Unnumbered Roll.
Questions about Now May Fervent Prayer Arise
What is the doh of Now May Fervent Prayer Arise?
In this version, in Ab major, 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 Now May Fervent Prayer Arise start on?
It starts on d (A♭ in Ab major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is Now May Fervent Prayer Arise in the public domain?
Yes. John Newton died in 1807, John Bacchus Dykes died in 1876; the words were in print by 1779 and the music in 1862. 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.