The World May Change from Old to New in Tonic Solfa
The World May Change from Old to New in Tonic Solfa to MATERNA, doh is C: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 3 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| sThe- | sworld--mmaymchange-sfrom- | sold--rtornew,-mFrom- |
| fnew-sto-lold-ta-- | sgain;-----sYet- |
| shope--mandmheaven,-sfor-- | sev---rerrtrue,-r'With-- |
| de'in-r'man's-m'heart-lre-- | r'main.-----sThe- |
| m'dreams--m'thatr'bless-d'the- | d'wea---trytsoul,-d'The- |
| r'strug--tgles-lof-sthe- | d'strong,-----d'Are- |
| d'steps--lto-lwards-d'some- | d'hap---spysgoal,-sThe- |
| lsto--d'ry-sof-r'hope's- | d'song.----- |
Got your choir's recording? Get it in solfa →
Download the solfa (PDF)A4, free to print and share with your choir
- Key
- C major
- Doh
- C
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- s (G)
- Range
- r to m' (D to E, a ninth)
- Tune
- MATERNA
- Words
- Sarah Flower Adams
- Music
- Samuel A. Ward
Tune MATERNA by Samuel A. Ward (1848–1903); words by Sarah Flower Adams (1805–1848). 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 world may change from old to new,
From new to old again;
Yet hope and heaven, forever true,
Within man's heart remain.
The dreams that bless the weary soul,
The struggles of the strong,
Are steps towards some happy goal,
The story of hope's song.
Hope leads the child to plant the flower,
The man to sow the seed;
Nor leaves fulfilment to her hour, —
But prompts again to deed.
And ere upon the old man's dust
The grass is seen to wave,
We look through falling tears, to trust
Hope's sunshine on the grave.
O, no! it is no flattering lure,
No fancy weak or fond,
When hope would bid us rest secure
In better life beyond.
Nor love, nor shame, nor grief, nor sin,
Her promise may gainsay;
The voice divine hath spoke within,
And God did ne'er betray.
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 s (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 and the chromatic de. 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
Sarah Flower Adams 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 274, “The Strength of Hope”.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Common Metre Double (8.6.8.6.8.6.8.6), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to MATERNA; any other Common Metre Double tune fits them as well.
- Words: Sarah Flower Adams (1805–1848)
- Music (1882): Samuel A. Ward (1848–1903)
Tune MATERNA by Samuel A. Ward (1848–1903); words by Sarah Flower Adams (1805–1848).
Sung to the same tune: And Let This Feeble Body Fail, Behold, the King of Zion Rides, I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say, Jerusalem! My Glorious Home, Joined in a Union Firm and Strong, My Shepherd Is the Lord on High, Not That Thy Boundless Love, My God, O God, That Madest Earth and Sky, O Thou, Who Didst Ordain the Word, The Earth, All Light and Loveliness, The Heavenly Spheres to Thee, O God, Thou Must Go Forth Alone, My Soul, Who Shall Behold the Glorious Day, Ye Joyous Ones! upon Whose Brow.
Questions about The World May Change from Old to New
What is the doh of The World May Change from Old to New?
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 World May Change from Old to New start on?
It starts on s (G in C major), a pickup on the word “The” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to s.
Is The World May Change from Old to New in the public domain?
Yes. Sarah Flower Adams died in 1848, Samuel A. Ward died in 1903; the words were in print by 1848 and the music in 1882. 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.