Soft Are the Fruitful Showers That Bring in Tonic Solfa
Soft Are the Fruitful Showers That Bring in Tonic Solfa to HOLY MATRIMONY, doh is G: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 4 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| s,Soft- | dare--dthemfruit--dful- | rshowers-rthat-mbring-l,The- |
| l,wel--l,come-s,pro--dmise- | t,of-dthe-rspring,-rAnd- |
| rsoft-dthe-t,ver--l,nal- | s,gale:-----s,Sweet- |
| t,the--dwildrwar--fblings- | mof-dthe-rgrove,-l,The- |
| t,voice--roffna--mture- | dand-mof-rlove,-fThat- |
| mglad--l,den-t,ev--t,ery- | dvale.----- |
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- Key
- G major
- Doh
- G
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- s, (D)
- Range
- s, to f (D to C, a seventh)
- Tune
- HOLY MATRIMONY
- Words
- Henry Moore
- Music
- Henry Williams Baker
Melody from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune HOLY MATRIMONY by Henry Williams Baker (1821–1877); words by Henry Moore (1732–1802). 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 G · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in G major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Soft are the fruitful showers that bring
The welcome promise of the spring,
And soft the vernal gale:
Sweet the wild warblings of the grove,
The voice of nature and of love,
That gladden every vale.
But softer in the mourner's ear
Sounds the mild voice of mercy near,
That whispers sins forgiven;
And sweeter far the music swells,
When to the raptured soul she tells
Of peace and promised heaven.
Fair are the flowers that deck the ground;
And groves and gardens blooming round,
Unnumbered charms unfold:
Bright is the sun's meridian ray,
And bright the beams of setting day,
That robe the clouds in gold.
But far more fair the pious breast,
In richer robes of goodness dressed,
Where heaven's own graces shine;
And brighter far the prospects rise,
That burst on faith's delighted eyes,
From glories all divine.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum G 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 s, (D), on the word “Soft”, 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. 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
Henry Moore wrote these words. They were printed in Hymns for Christian Devotion, compiled by John G. Adams and Edwin H. Chapin (Boston, 1846), as hymn 336 of its twenty-second edition (1853), “Pardon”.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Common Particular Metre (8.8.6.8.8.6), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to HOLY MATRIMONY; any other Common Particular Metre tune fits them as well.
- Words: Henry Moore (1732–1802)
- Music (1865): Henry Williams Baker (1821–1877)
Melody from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune HOLY MATRIMONY by Henry Williams Baker (1821–1877); words by Henry Moore (1732–1802). The Open Hymnal Project publishes this tune as public domain; NoteFusion's engine wrote the solfa from its notes. The melody has not yet been checked against a printed hymn book.
Sung to the same tune: Author of Faith, to Thee I Cry, Come, Wisdom, Power, and Grace Divine, Hail, Love Divine! Joys Ever New, He Came to Earth Who Came from God, How Blest the Hearts, How Happy Are the Little Flock, How Happy Is the Pilgrim's Lot, Lord of the Church, We Humbly Pray, O Glorious Hope of Perfect Love, O Jesus, Lover of Our Race, O Saviour, Cast a Gracious Smile, O Son of God, on Thee We Call, O Thou Who Hast Our Sorrows Borne, Safe in the Comfort of Thy Grace, Still Lord, I Languish for Thy Grace, Thee, Jesu, Thee, the Sinner's Friend, Thou Great Mysterious God Unknown, To Thee My Soul Enraptured Sings, Where’er I Go, Whate’er My Task.
Questions about Soft Are the Fruitful Showers That Bring
What is the doh of Soft Are the Fruitful Showers That Bring?
In this version, in G major, doh is G. 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 Soft Are the Fruitful Showers That Bring start on?
It starts on s, (D in G major), a pickup on the word “Soft” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to s,.
Is Soft Are the Fruitful Showers That Bring in the public domain?
Yes. Henry Moore died in 1802, Henry Williams Baker died in 1877; the words were in print by 1853 and the music in 1865. 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.