O Light That Knew No Dawn in Tonic Solfa
O Light That Knew No Dawn in Tonic Solfa to ST. JOHN (PARISH CHOIR), doh is D: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 5 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| dO- | mLight-mthat-sknew-sno- | d'dawn,-----d'That- |
| tshines-lto-send--feless- | sday,-----sAll- |
| lthings-tin-d'earth-land- | sheaven-----sAre- |
| flus--mtred-rby-rThy- | dray;-----dNo- |
| deye-rcan-mto-dThy- | mthrone-fas--scend,-sNor- |
| lmind-tThy-d'bright--d'ness- | r'com----tpre---- |
| d'hend.------- |
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- Key
- D major
- Doh
- D
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (D)
- Range
- d to r' (D to E, a ninth)
- Tune
- ST. JOHN (PARISH CHOIR)
- Words
- Traditional Greek, John Brownlie
- Music
- Parish Choir
Tune ST. JOHN (PARISH CHOIR) (Parish Choir); words by Traditional Greek; translated by John Brownlie (1857–1925). 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 D · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in D major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
O Light that knew no dawn,
That shines to endless day,
All things in earth and heaven
Are lustred by Thy ray;
No eye can to Thy throne ascend,
Nor mind Thy brightness comprehend.
Thy grace, O Father, give,
That I may serve in fear;
Above all boons, I pray,
Grant me Thy voice to hear;
From sin Thy child in mercy free,
And let me dwell in light with Thee.
That, cleansed from filthy stain,
I may meet homage give,
And, pure in heart, behold
And serve Thee while I live;
Clean hands in holy worship raise,
And Thee, O Christ my Saviour, praise.
In supplication meek
To Thee I bend the knee;
O Christ, when Thou shalt come,
In love remember me,
And in Thy kingdom, by Thy grace,
Grant me a humble servant's place.
Thy grace, O Father, give,
I humbly Thee implore;
And let Thy mercy bless
Thy servant more and more.
All grace and glory be to Thee
From age to age eternally.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum D 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 (D), on the word “O”, 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 and the chromatic fe. 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 Brownlie translated these words from the Greek service books for Hymns of the Greek Church (Edinburgh and London, 1900), headed “St. Gregory”.
The book printed the words without tunes. They are in Hallelujah Metre (6.6.6.6.8.8), and this page sets them to ST. JOHN (PARISH CHOIR); any other Hallelujah Metre tune fits them as well.
- Words: Traditional Greek
- Translated (1900): John Brownlie (1857–1925)
- Melody (1851): Parish Choir
Tune ST. JOHN (PARISH CHOIR) (Parish Choir); words by Traditional Greek; translated by John Brownlie (1857–1925).
Sung to the same tune: Arise, My Soul, Arise, Blow Ye the Trumpet, Blow, Borne on the Wings of Light, By Whom Was David Taught, Come to the Christ in Tears, Death Moves with Victor's Tread, In Loud, Exalted Strains, Lord, We Thy Will Obey, Supported by the Word, Th’ Atoning Work Is Done, The Church a Garden Is, The Wealth of High Estate, Thou, Infinite in Love, Thy Works, Not Mine, O Christ, To Thee, Great Source of Light, What Contradictions Meet, When at Thy Feet, Oppressed.
Questions about O Light That Knew No Dawn
What is the doh of O Light That Knew No Dawn?
In this version, in D major, doh is D. 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 O Light That Knew No Dawn start on?
It starts on d (D in D major), a pickup on the word “O” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is O Light That Knew No Dawn in the public domain?
Yes. John Brownlie died in 1925; the words were in print by 1900 and the music in 1851. 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.