The Light Pours Down from Heaven in Tonic Solfa
The Light Pours Down from Heaven in Tonic Solfa to ST. ALPHEGE, doh is G: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 5 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| dThe- | mlight-fpours-sdown-dfrom- | t,hea----dven,-dAnd- |
| t,en--dters-fwhere-mit- | rmay;-----dThe- |
| meyes-fof-sall-searth's- | lchild----sren-dAre- |
| dcheered-rwith-mone-rbright- | dday.----- |
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- Key
- G major
- Doh
- G
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (G)
- Range
- t, to l (F♯ to E, a seventh)
- Tune
- ST. ALPHEGE
- Words
- Anonymous
- Music
- Henry John Gauntlett
Tune ST. ALPHEGE by Henry John Gauntlett (1805–1876); words by Anonymous. 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
The light pours down from heaven,
And enters where it may;
The eyes of all earth's children
Are cheered with one bright day.
So let the mind's true sunshine
Be spread o'er earth as free,
And fill men's waiting spirits,
As the waters fill the sea.
The soul can shed a glory
On every work well done;
As even things most lowly
Are radiant in the sun.
Then let each human spirit
Enjoy the vision bright;
The truth which comes from heaven
Shall spread like heaven's own light;
Till earth becomes God's temple;
And every human heart
Shall join in one great service,
Each happy in his part.
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 d (G), on the word “The”, 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
These words were printed without an author's name in A Book of Hymns for Public and Private Devotion, compiled by Samuel Longfellow and Samuel Johnson (Boston, 1848), as hymn 458, “Light For All”.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Sevens and Sixes (7.6.7.6), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to ST. ALPHEGE; any other Sevens and Sixes tune fits them as well.
- Words: Anonymous
- Music (1852): Henry John Gauntlett (1805–1876)
Tune ST. ALPHEGE by Henry John Gauntlett (1805–1876); words by Anonymous.
Sung to the same tune: In Time of Tribulation, O God of Light and Glory, The Mellow Eve Is Gliding, Thy Mighty Word Commanding.
Questions about The Light Pours Down from Heaven
What is the doh of The Light Pours Down from Heaven?
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 The Light Pours Down from Heaven start on?
It starts on d (G in G major), a pickup on the word “The” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is The Light Pours Down from Heaven in the public domain?
Yes. Henry John Gauntlett died in 1876; the words were in print by 1848 and the music in 1852. 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.