Our Blest Redeemer, Ere He Breathed in Tonic Solfa
Our Blest Redeemer, Ere He Breathed in Tonic Solfa to ST. CUTHBERT: the solfa with the words, staff notation, the seven verses, and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| dOur- | dblest--dRe-rdeem--mer,- | fere--fHembreathed-sHis- |
| d'ten--mder-mlast-fefare-- | swell,-----fA- |
| mguide,--mafcom--sfort-- | ler,-lbe--squeathed-mWith- |
| sus-----fto- | mdwell.----- |
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- Key
- Eb major
- Doh
- Eb
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (E♭)
- Range
- d to d' (E♭ to E♭, an octave)
- Tune
- ST. CUTHBERT
- Words
- Harriet Auber
- Music
- John Bacchus Dykes
Tune ST. CUTHBERT by John Bacchus Dykes (1823–1876); words by Harriet Auber (1773–1862). 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 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
Our blest Redeemer, ere He breathed
His tender last farewell,
A guide, a comforter, bequeathed
With us to dwell.
He came in semblance of a dove,
With sheltering wings outspread,
The holy balm of peace and love
On earth to shed.
He came in tongues of living flame
To teach, convince, subdue,
All powerful as the wind He came
As viewless too.
He came sweet influence to impart,
A gracious, willing guest,
While He can find one humble heart
Wherein to rest.
And His that gentle voice we hear,
Soft as the breath of even,
That checks each fault, that calms each fear,
And speaks of Heav’n.
And every virtue we possess,
And every conquest won,
And every thought of holiness,
Are His alone.
Spirit of purity and grace,
Our weakness, pitying, see:
O make our hearts Thy dwelling place
And worthier Thee.
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♭), on the word “Our”, 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 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
Harriet Auber published these words in The Spirit of the Psalms in 1829. John Bacchus Dykes wrote the tune ST. CUTHBERT for them in 1861.
- Words (1829): Harriet Auber (1773–1862)
- Music (1861): John Bacchus Dykes (1823–1876)
Tune ST. CUTHBERT by John Bacchus Dykes (1823–1876); words by Harriet Auber (1773–1862).
Questions about Our Blest Redeemer, Ere He Breathed
What is the doh of Our Blest Redeemer, Ere He Breathed?
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 Our Blest Redeemer, Ere He Breathed start on?
It starts on d (E♭ in Eb major), a pickup on the word “Our” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is Our Blest Redeemer, Ere He Breathed in the public domain?
Yes. Harriet Auber died in 1862, John Bacchus Dykes died in 1876; the words were first published in 1829 and the music in 1861. 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.