Open Now Thy Gates of Beauty in Tonic Solfa
Open Now Thy Gates of Beauty in Tonic Solfa: the solfa line by line with the words, staff notation, all 5 verses, and a piano to sing along with.
- Key
- Bb major
- Doh
- Bb
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (B♭)
- Range
- d to m' (B♭ to D, a tenth)
- Tune
- UNSER HERRSCHER
- Words
- Benjamin Schmolck, Catherine Winkworth
- Music
- Joachim Neander
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune UNSER HERRSCHER by Joachim Neander (1650–1680); words by Benjamin Schmolck (1672–1737); translated by Catherine Winkworth (1827–1878). Sources and licences.
The solfa with the words
| dOp---renmnow-dthy- | mgates-fof-sbeau--sty,- |
| d'Zi--ton,l_slet-m'me- | r'en--r'ter-d'there,--- |
| dWhere--rmymsoul-din- | mjoy--fful-sdu--sty- |
| d'Waits-tforl_sHim-m'Who- | r'an--r'swers-d'prayer.--- |
| m'Oh,--m'howr'bless--r'èd- | d'is-d'this-tplace,--- |
| lFilled--lwithsso--d'lace,- | r'light-tand-d'grace!--- |
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 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
Open now thy gates of beauty,
Zion, let me enter there,
Where my soul in joyful duty
Waits for Him Who answers prayer.
Oh, how blessèd is this place,
Filled with solace, light and grace!
Lord, my God, I come before Thee,
Come Thou also unto me;
Where we find Thee and adore Thee,
There a heav'n on earth must be.
To my heart, oh, enter Thou,
Let it be Thy temple now!
Here Thy praise is gladly chanted,
Here Thy seed is duly sown;
Let my soul, where it is planted,
Bring forth precious sheaves alone,
So that all I hear may be
Fruitful unto life in me.
Thou my faith increase and quicken,
Let me keep Thy gift divine,
Howsoe'er temptations thicken;
May Thy Word still o'er me shine
As my guiding star through life,
As my comfort in my strife.
Speak, O God, and I will hear Thee,
Let Thy will be done indeed;
May I undisturbed draw near Thee
While Thou dost Thy people feed.
Here of life the fountain flows,
Here is balm for all our woes.
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
The words are by Benjamin Schmolck, first published in 1730. The English translation is by Catherine Winkworth (1863). The tune, UNSER HERRSCHER, is by Joachim Neander (1680). This version of the melody and the words comes from the Open Hymnal Project.
- Words (1730): Benjamin Schmolck (1672–1737)
- Translated (1863): Catherine Winkworth (1827–1878)
- Music (1680): Joachim Neander (1650–1680)
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune UNSER HERRSCHER by Joachim Neander (1650–1680); words by Benjamin Schmolck (1672–1737); translated by Catherine Winkworth (1827–1878). 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 Open Now Thy Gates of Beauty
What is the doh of Open Now Thy Gates of Beauty?
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 Open Now Thy Gates of Beauty start on?
It starts on d (B♭ in Bb major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is Open Now Thy Gates of Beauty in the public domain?
Yes. Benjamin Schmolck died in 1737, Catherine Winkworth died in 1878, Joachim Neander died in 1680; the words were first published in 1863 and the music in 1680. 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.