The People That in Darkness Lay in Tonic Solfa
The People That in Darkness Lay in Tonic Solfa to MELITA, doh is C: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 5 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| dThe- | mpeo---mplesthat-sin- | ldark--lness-slay,-sThe- |
| d'con--r'fines-tof-se-- | ster--fenal-snight,-rWe,- |
| fwe--fhavemseen-ma- | sgos---spelfeday,-tThe- |
| sglo--ferious-mbeams-lof- | sheav--feenly-mlight,-mHis- |
| mSpir---mitfin-four- | fehearts--fehathsshone,-sAnd- |
| sshowed-lthe-sFa--mther- | rin--dthedSon.- |
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- Key
- C major
- Doh
- C
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (C)
- Range
- d to r' (C to D, a ninth)
- Tune
- MELITA
- Words
- Charles Wesley
- Music
- John Bacchus Dykes
Melody from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune MELITA by John Bacchus Dykes (1823–1876); words by Charles Wesley (1707–1788). 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 C · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in C major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
The people that in darkness lay,
The confines of eternal night,
We, we have seen a gospel day,
The glorious beams of heavenly light,
His Spirit in our hearts hath shone,
And showed the Father in the Son.
Father of everlasting grace,
Thou hast in us thy arm revealed,
Hast multiplied the faithful race,
Who, conscious of their pardon sealed,
Of joy unspeakable possest,
Anticipate their heavenly rest.
In tears who sowed, in joy we reap,
And praise thy goodness all day long:
Him in our eye of faith we keep,
Who gave us our triumphal song,
And doth his spoils to all divide,
A lot among the sanctified.
Thou hast our bonds in sunder broke,
Took all our load of guilt away;
From sin, the world, and Satan's yoke,
(Like Israel saved in Midian's day)
Redeemed us by our conquering Lord,
Our Gideon, and his Spirit's sword.
Not like the warring sons of men,
With shouts, and garments rolled in blood,
Our Captain doth the fight maintain;
But, lo! the burning Spirit of God
Kindles in each a secret fire;
And all our sins as smoke expire.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum C 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 (C), 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 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
Charles Wesley wrote these words. His brother John printed them in A Collection of Hymns for the Use of the People Called Methodists (1780), hymn 493.
The book printed the words without tunes. They are in Long Metre, six lines (8.8.8.8.8.8), and this page sets them to MELITA; any other Long Metre, six lines tune fits them as well.
- Words: Charles Wesley (1707–1788)
- Music (1861): John Bacchus Dykes (1823–1876)
Melody from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune MELITA by John Bacchus Dykes (1823–1876); words by Charles Wesley (1707–1788). 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: As Every Day Thy Mercy Spares, Captain of Israel's Host, and Guide, Come, O Thou Prophet of the Lord, Comfort, Ye Ministers of Grace, Eternal Father, Strong to Save, Eternal Lord of Earth and Skies, Expand Thy Wings, Celestial Dove, Father of Jesus Christ the Just, Father of Mercies! God of Peace, Forgive Us for Thy Mercy's Sake, Forth from the Dark and Stormy Sky, Great God, This Sacred Day of Thine, Great God! the Heavens' Well Ordered Frame, He Sendeth Sun, He Sendeth Shower, How Precious Are Thy Thoughts of Peace, How Rich Thy Gifts, Almighty King, I Want the Spirit of Power Within, I'll Praise My Maker While I've Breath, I’ll Praise My Maker Whilst I’ve Breath, Jesus, the Gift Divine I Know, Jesus, with Kindest Pity See, Leader of Israel's Host, and Guide, Let All the Earth Their Voices Raise, Like Israel's Hosts to Exile Driven, Master, I Own Thy Lawful Claim, My Hope Is Built, O Father, — Draw Us After Thee, O Father! Lift Our Souls Above, O God of My Salvation, Hear, O God of Peace and Pardoning Love, O God, If Thou Art Love Indeed, O God, Thy Righteousness We Own, O Jesus, to Thy Servants Give, O Lord, My God, I Cry to Thee, O Love, How Cheering Is Thy Ray, O Love, Who Formedst Me to Wear, O, Draw Me, Father, After Thee, O, Still Trust on, If in the Heart, Ours Is a Lovely World, How Fair, Peace, Doubting Heart! My God's I Am, Saviour, to Thee We Humbly Cry, Spirit of Truth, Essential God, Sweet to the Soul the Parting Ray, The Bird That Soars on Highest Wing, The Lord My Pasture Shall Prepare, Thou Art, O God, the Life and Light, Thou Hidden Love of God, Whose Height, Thy Power and Saving Truth to Show, To Christ, the Son, the Father Spake, What Am I, O Thou Glorious God, When in the Clouds the Lord Appears, While Here as Wandering Sheep We Stray, With Grateful Hearts with Joyful Tongues, Within Thy Courts My Praise Shall Rise.
Questions about The People That in Darkness Lay
What is the doh of The People That in Darkness Lay?
In this version, in C major, doh is C. 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 People That in Darkness Lay start on?
It starts on d (C in C major), a pickup on the word “The” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is The People That in Darkness Lay in the public domain?
Yes. Charles Wesley died in 1788, John Bacchus Dykes died in 1876; the words were in print by 1780 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.