Of the Father's Love Begotten (Divinum Mysterium, Isorythmic) in Tonic Solfa
Of the Father's Love Begotten in Tonic Solfa: the solfa line by line with the words, staff notation, all 9 verses, and a piano to sing along with.
- Key
- Eb major
- Doh
- Eb
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (E♭)
- Range
- d to d' (E♭ to E♭, an octave)
- Tune
- DIVINUM MYSTERIUM (ISORYTHMIC)
- Words
- Aurelius Clemens Prudentius, John Mason Neale, Henry Williams Baker
- Music
- Traditional Latin
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune DIVINUM MYSTERIUM (ISORYTHMIC) (traditional Latin); words by Aurelius Clemens Prudentius (348–413); translated by John Mason Neale (1818–1866) and Henry Williams Baker (1821–1877). Sources and licences.
The solfa with the words
| dOf-rthe-mFa--sther's- | flove-lbe--lgot--sten- |
| d'Ere-sthe-mworlds-fbe-- | sgan-lto-rbe,--- |
| mHe-dis-sAl--spha- | land-d'O--d'me--tga,- |
| lHe-tthe-ssource,-lthe- | rend--feing-sHe,--- |
| sOf--lthelthings-sthat- | dare,-rthat-fhave-mbeen,- |
| fAnd-sthat-lfu--d'ture- | tayears-tashall-lsee,--- |
| tEv----d'er---- | fmore---mand--- |
| rev----rer---- | dmore!------- |
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 WhatsApp message to the choir.
Doh is Eb · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in Eb major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Of the Father's love begotten
Ere the worlds began to be,
He is Alpha and Omega,
He the source, the ending He,
Of the things that are, that have been,
And that future years shall see,
Evermore and evermore!
At His Word they were created;
He commanded; it was done:
Heav'n and earth and depths of ocean
In their threefold order one;
All that grows beneath the shining
Of the moon and burning sun,
Evermore and evermore!
He is found in human fashion,
Death and sorrow here to know,
That the race of Adam's children,
Doomed by law to endless woe,
May not henceforth die and perish
In the dreadful gulf below,
Evermore and evermore!
Oh that birth forever blessèd!
When the virgin, full of grace,
By the Holy Ghost conceiving,
Bare the Savior of our race;
And the Babe, the world's Redeemer,
First revealed His sacred face,
Evermore and evermore!
O ye heights of heav'n adore Him;
Angel hosts, His praises sing;
Pow'rs, dominions, bow before Him,
and extol our God and King:
Let no tongue on earth be silent,
Every voice in concert ring,
Evermore and evermore!
He is here, Whom seers in old time Chanted of, while ages ran;
Whom the writings of the prophets Promised since the world began:
Then foretold, now manifested, to receive the praise of man,
Evermore and evermore!
Righteous Judge of souls departed, Righteous King of them that live,
On the Father's throne exalted None in might with Thee may strive;
Who at last in vengeance coming Sinners from Thy face shalt drive,
Evermore and evermore!
Thee let old men, Thee let young men, Thee let choirs of infants sing;
Thee the matrons and the virgins, And the children answering:
Let their guileless songs re-echo, And the heart its music bring,
Evermore and evermore!
D Christ, to Thee with God the Father, And, O Holy Ghost, to Thee,
Hymn and chant with high thanksgiving, And unwearied praises be:
Honor, glory, and dominion, And eternal victory,
Evermore and evermore!
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum Eb 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 (E♭).
- 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 ta. 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
The words are by Aurelius Clemens Prudentius, first published in 500. The English translation is by John Mason Neale and Henry Williams Baker (1854). The tune, DIVINUM MYSTERIUM (ISORYTHMIC), is Traditional Latin. This version of the melody and the words comes from the Open Hymnal Project.
- Words (500): Aurelius Clemens Prudentius (348–413)
- Translated (1854): John Mason Neale (1818–1866)
- Translated (1854): Henry Williams Baker (1821–1877)
- Melody (1300): Traditional Latin
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune DIVINUM MYSTERIUM (ISORYTHMIC) (traditional Latin); words by Aurelius Clemens Prudentius (348–413); translated by John Mason Neale (1818–1866) and Henry Williams Baker (1821–1877). The Open Hymnal Project publishes this hymn as public domain; NoteFusion's engine wrote the solfa from its notes. The melody has not yet been checked against a printed hymn book.
Questions about Of the Father's Love Begotten (Divinum Mysterium, Isorythmic)
What is the doh of Of the Father's Love Begotten (Divinum Mysterium, Isorythmic)?
In this version, in Eb major, doh is Eb. 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 Of the Father's Love Begotten (Divinum Mysterium, Isorythmic) start on?
It starts on d (E♭ in Eb major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is Of the Father's Love Begotten (Divinum Mysterium, Isorythmic) in the public domain?
Yes. Aurelius Clemens Prudentius died in 413, John Mason Neale died in 1866, Henry Williams Baker died in 1877; the words were first published in 1854 and the music in 1300. Everyone named died before 1955 and both were published before 1929, so the hymn is out of copyright in Nigeria, the UK, the EU and the United States. Modern arrangements and translations can still be under copyright.