Songs of Praise the Angels Sang in Tonic Solfa
Songs of Praise the Angels Sang in Tonic Solfa to INNOCENTS, doh is D: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 5 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| mSongs--fof | spraise-d'the-tan--lgels- | ssang,---dHeaven--rwith |
| mhal--sle--flu--mjahs- | rrang,---mWhen,--fCre- |
| sa--d'tion's-twork-lbe-- | sgun,---dSpake--rthe |
| mLord,-fand-mit-rwas- | ddone.--- |
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- Key
- D major
- Doh
- D
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- m (F♯)
- Range
- d to d' (D to D, an octave)
- Tune
- INNOCENTS
- Words
- James Montgomery
- Music
- French Melody, 13th cent., ascr., George Frederick Handel, The Parish Choir, London
Tune INNOCENTS by ascr., George Frederick Handel (died undefined); words by James Montgomery (1771–1854). 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
Songs of praise the angels sang,
Heaven with hallelujahs rang,
When, Creation's work begun,
Spake the Lord, and it was done.
Songs of praise awoke the morn,
When the Prince of Peace was born;
Songs of praise arose, when he
Captive led captivity.
Heaven and earth must pass away,
Songs of praise shall crown that day;
God will make new heavens and earth,
Songs of praise shall hail their birth.
And shall man alone be dumb,
Till that glorious kingdom come?
No; his heart delights to raise
Psalms and hymns and songs of praise.
Saints below, with heart and voice,
Still in songs of praise rejoice,
Learning here, by faith and love,
Songs of praise to sing above.
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 m (F♯), on the word “Songs”, 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
James Montgomery wrote these words. They were printed in A Book of Hymns for Public and Private Devotion, compiled by Samuel Longfellow and Samuel Johnson (Boston, 1848), as hymn 48, “Songs of Praise”. The compilers changed some of the words, and this is their version.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Sevens (7.7.7.7), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to INNOCENTS; any other Sevens tune fits them as well.
- Words: James Montgomery (1771–1854)
- Melody: French Melody, 13th cent.
- Music (1728): ascr., George Frederick Handel (died undefined)
- Melody (1850): The Parish Choir, London
Tune INNOCENTS by ascr., George Frederick Handel (died undefined); words by James Montgomery (1771–1854).
Sung to the same tune: Day by Day the Manna Fell, Forest Beasts, That Live by Prey, God of Mercy, Hear Our Prayer, Hail, All Hail the Joyful Morn, Hail, Thou Blessed Cross, All Hail, Hark, My Soul! It Is the Lord, In the Dark of Early Morn, In Thy Courts Let Peace Be Found, Lord, My Times Are in Thy Hand, Peace! the Welcome Sound Proclaim, Seems It in My Anguish Lone, Sinners, Turn; Why Will Ye Die, Slowly, by God's Hand Unfurled, Softly Fades the Twilight Ray, They, Who on the Lord Rely, To Thy Temple I Repair, When Before Thy Throne We Kneel, Winter Has a Joy for Me.
Questions about Songs of Praise the Angels Sang
What is the doh of Songs of Praise the Angels Sang?
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 Songs of Praise the Angels Sang start on?
It starts on m (F♯ in D major), a pickup on the word “Songs” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to m.
Is Songs of Praise the Angels Sang in the public domain?
Yes. James Montgomery died in 1854, ascr., George Frederick Handel died in undefined; the words were in print by 1848 and the music in 1728. 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.