The Mouth of Fools Doth God Confess in Tonic Solfa
The Mouth of Fools Doth God Confess in Tonic Solfa: the solfa line by line with the words, staff notation, all 6 verses, and a piano to sing along with.
- Key
- G major
- Doh
- G
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (G)
- Range
- fe, to s (C♯ to D, a ninth)
- Tune
- ES SPRICHT DER UNWEISEN MUND
- Words
- Martin Luther, Richard Massie
- Music
- From Walter's Geistliche Gesangbüchlein, 1524
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune ES SPRICHT DER UNWEISEN MUND (From Walter's Geistliche Gesangbüchlein, 1524); words by Martin Luther (1483–1546); translated by Richard Massie (1800–1887). Sources and licences.
The solfa with the words
| dThe---dmouth-l,of- | s,fools-ddoth-rGod-mcon-- |
| dfess,---__dBut- | dwhile-rtheir-mlips-fdraw- |
| rnigh---dHim,--- | dTheir---dheart-l,is- |
| s,full-dof-rwick--med-- | dness,---__dAnd- |
| dall-rtheir-mdeeds-fde-- | rny---dHim.--- |
| __dCo--l,rrupt-t,are- | dthey,-l,and-s,ev--fe,ery- |
| s,one---__s,A-- | dbom--rin--mab--fle- |
| mworks-rhath-mdone;--- | __rThere-mis-fnot- |
| sone-mwell--rdo-d_r_- | der.------- |
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 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 mouth of fools doth God confess,
But while their lips draw nigh Him,
Their heart is full of wickedness,
And all their deeds deny Him.
Corrupt are they, and every one
Abominable works hath done;
There is not one welldoer.
The Lord looked down from his high tow'r
On all mankind below Him,
To see if any owned His pow'r,
And truly sought to know Him;
Who all their understanding bent
To search His holy Word, intent
To do his will in earnest.
But none there was who walked with God,
For all aside had slidden,
Delusive paths of folly trod,
And followed lusts forbidden;
Not one there was who practiced good,
And yet they deemed, in haughty mood,
Their deeds must surely please Him.
How long, by folly blindly led,
Will ye oppress the needy,
And eat my people up like bread?
So fierce are ye, and greedy!
In God they put no trust at all,
Nor will on Him in trouble call,
But be their own providers.
Therefore their heart is never still,
A falling leaf dismays them;
God is with him who doth His will,
Who trusts him and obeys Him;
But ye the poor man's hope despise,
And laugh at him, e'en when he cries,
That God is his sure comfort.
Who shall to Israel's outcast race From Zion bring salvation?
God will himself at length show grace, And loose the captive nation;
That will he do by Christ their King; Let Jacob then be
glad and sing, And Israel be joyful.
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).
- 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 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
The words are by Martin Luther, first published in 1524. The English translation is by Richard Massie (1854). The tune, ES SPRICHT DER UNWEISEN MUND, is from Walter's Geistliche Gesangbüchlein, 1524. This version of the melody and the words comes from the Open Hymnal Project.
- Words (1524): Martin Luther (1483–1546)
- Translated (1854): Richard Massie (1800–1887)
- Melody (1524): From Walter's Geistliche Gesangbüchlein, 1524
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune ES SPRICHT DER UNWEISEN MUND (From Walter's Geistliche Gesangbüchlein, 1524); words by Martin Luther (1483–1546); translated by Richard Massie (1800–1887). 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 The Mouth of Fools Doth God Confess
What is the doh of The Mouth of Fools Doth God Confess?
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 Mouth of Fools Doth God Confess start on?
It starts on d (G in G major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is The Mouth of Fools Doth God Confess in the public domain?
Yes. Martin Luther died in 1546, Richard Massie died in 1887; the words were first published in 1854 and the music in 1524. 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.