Thee, Jesu, Thee, the Sinner's Friend in Tonic Solfa
Thee, Jesu, Thee, the Sinner's Friend in Tonic Solfa to HOLY MATRIMONY, doh is G: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 7 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| s,Thee,- | dJe---dsu,mthee,-dthe- | rsin--rner's-mfriend,-l,I- |
| l,fol--l,low-s,on-dto- | t,ap--dpre--rhend,-rRe-- |
| rnew-dthe-t,glo--l,rious- | s,strife;-----s,Di-- |
| t,vine---dlyrcon--ffi-- | mdent-dand-rbold,-l,With- |
| t,faith's--rstrongfarm-mon- | dthee-mlay-rhold,-fThee- |
| mmy-l,e--t,ter--t,nal- | dlife.----- |
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- Key
- G major
- Doh
- G
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- s, (D)
- Range
- s, to f (D to C, a seventh)
- Tune
- HOLY MATRIMONY
- Words
- Charles Wesley, John Wesley
- Music
- Henry Williams Baker
Melody from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune HOLY MATRIMONY by Henry Williams Baker (1821–1877); words by Charles Wesley (1707–1788) or John Wesley (1703–1791). 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
Thee, Jesu, thee, the sinner's friend,
I follow on to apprehend,
Renew the glorious strife;
Divinely confident and bold,
With faith's strong arm on thee lay hold,
Thee my eternal life.
Thy heart, I know, thy tender heart
Doth in my sorrows feel its part,
And at my tears relent;
My powerful sighs thou canst not bear
Nor stand the violence of my prayer,
My prayer omnipotent.
Give me the grace, the love I claim;
Thy Spirit now demands thy name;
Thou know'st the Spirit's will;
He helps my souls infirmity,
And strongly intercedes for me
With groans unspeakable.
Prisoner of hope, to thee I turn,
And, calmly confident, I mourn,
And pray, and weep for thee:
Tell me thy love, thy secret tell,
Thy mystic name in me reveal,
Reveal thyself in me.
Descend, pass by me, and proclaim,
O Lord of hosts, thy glorious name,
The Lord, the gracious Lord,
Long-suffering, merciful, and kind;
The God who always bears in mind
His everlasting word.
Plenteous he is in truth and grace;
He wills that all the fallen race
Should turn, repent, and live;
His pardoning grace for all is free;
Transgression, sin, iniquity,
He freely doth forgive.
Mercy he doth for thousands keep;
He goes and seeks the one lost sheep,
And brings his wanderer home;
And every soul that sheep might be:
Come then, my Lord, and gather me,
My Jesus, quickly come!
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 s, (D), on the word “Thee”, 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
John Wesley printed these words in A Collection of Hymns for the Use of the People Called Methodists (1780), hymn 144. They first appeared in a book he and his brother Charles published together, and the Collection's own index cannot say which of the two wrote them.
The book printed the words without tunes. They are in Common Particular Metre (8.8.6.8.8.6), and this page sets them to HOLY MATRIMONY; any other Common Particular Metre tune fits them as well.
- Words: Charles Wesley (1707–1788)
- Words: John Wesley (1703–1791)
- Music (1865): Henry Williams Baker (1821–1877)
Melody from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune HOLY MATRIMONY by Henry Williams Baker (1821–1877); words by Charles Wesley (1707–1788) or John Wesley (1703–1791). 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: Author of Faith, to Thee I Cry, Come, Wisdom, Power, and Grace Divine, Hail, Love Divine! Joys Ever New, He Came to Earth Who Came from God, How Blest the Hearts, How Happy Are the Little Flock, How Happy Is the Pilgrim's Lot, Lord of the Church, We Humbly Pray, O Glorious Hope of Perfect Love, O Jesus, Lover of Our Race, O Saviour, Cast a Gracious Smile, O Son of God, on Thee We Call, O Thou Who Hast Our Sorrows Borne, Safe in the Comfort of Thy Grace, Soft Are the Fruitful Showers That Bring, Still Lord, I Languish for Thy Grace, Thou Great Mysterious God Unknown, To Thee My Soul Enraptured Sings, Where’er I Go, Whate’er My Task.
Questions about Thee, Jesu, Thee, the Sinner's Friend
What is the doh of Thee, Jesu, Thee, the Sinner's Friend?
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 Thee, Jesu, Thee, the Sinner's Friend start on?
It starts on s, (D in G major), a pickup on the word “Thee” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to s,.
Is Thee, Jesu, Thee, the Sinner's Friend in the public domain?
Yes. Charles Wesley died in 1788, John Wesley died in 1791, Henry Williams Baker died in 1877; the words were in print by 1780 and the music in 1865. 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.