The Star Proclaims the King Is Here in Tonic Solfa
The Star Proclaims the King Is Here in Tonic Solfa: the solfa line by line with the words, staff notation, all 5 verses, and a piano to sing along with.
- Key
- Eb major
- Doh
- Eb
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (E♭)
- Range
- d to d' (E♭ to E♭, an octave)
- Tune
- WO GOTT ZUM HAUS
- Words
- Coelius Sedulius, John Mason Neale
- Music
- From Klug's Geistliche Lieder, Wittenberg, 1533
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune WO GOTT ZUM HAUS (From Klug's Geistliche Lieder, Wittenberg, 1533); words by Coelius Sedulius (5th century); translated by John Mason Neale (1818–1866). Sources and licences.
The solfa with the words
| dThe---sstar-spro-- | mclaims-rthe-mKing-feis- |
| shere;--sBut,mHer--sod,- | fwhy-sthis-msense--rless- |
| dfear?--sHeltakes-lno- | mrealms-sof-fearth-fa-- |
| mway--d'Whotgives-lthe- | srealms-lof-fheav'n-m_rly- |
| dday.------- |
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 Eb · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in Eb major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
The star proclaims the King is here;
But, Herod, why this senseless fear?
He takes no realms of earth away
Who gives the realms of heav'nly day.
The wiser Magi see from far
And follow on His guiding star;
And led by light, to light they press
And by their gifts their God confess.
Within the Jordan's crystal flood
In meekness stands the Lamb of God
And, sinless, sanctifies the wave,
Mankind from sin to cleanse and save.
At Cana first His pow'r is shown;
His might the blushing waters own
And, changing as He speaks the word,
Flow wine, obedient to their Lord.
All glory, Jesus, be to Thee
For this Thy glad epiphany;
Whom with the Father we adore
And Holy Ghost forevermore.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum Eb 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 (E♭).
- 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 Coelius Sedulius, first published in 450. The English translation is by John Mason Neale (1852). The tune, WO GOTT ZUM HAUS, is from Klug's Geistliche Lieder, Wittenberg, 1533. This version of the melody and the words comes from the Open Hymnal Project.
- Words (450): Coelius Sedulius (5th century)
- Translated (1852): John Mason Neale (1818–1866)
- Melody (1533): From Klug's Geistliche Lieder, Wittenberg, 1533
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune WO GOTT ZUM HAUS (From Klug's Geistliche Lieder, Wittenberg, 1533); words by Coelius Sedulius (5th century); translated by John Mason Neale (1818–1866). 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.
Sung to the same tune: Happy the Man Who Feareth God (Wo Gott Zum Haus), Oh, Blest the House.
Questions about The Star Proclaims the King Is Here
What is the doh of The Star Proclaims the King Is Here?
In this version, in Eb major, doh is Eb. 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 Star Proclaims the King Is Here start on?
It starts on d (E♭ in Eb major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is The Star Proclaims the King Is Here in the public domain?
Yes. Coelius Sedulius lived in the 5th century, John Mason Neale died in 1866; the words were first published in 1852 and the music in 1533. 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.