Thou Fount of Love and Grace in Tonic Solfa
Thou Fount of Love and Grace in Tonic Solfa to DARWALL, doh is D: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 4 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| dThou- | mFount-dof-slove-mand- | d'grace,-----tWhose- |
| lthrone-sis-ffixed-mon- | rhigh,-----rUn-- |
| mveil-dthy-lsmil--sing- | feface,-rAnd-r'to-d'our- |
| tsouls---ldraw--- | snigh;-----sAnd- |
| llet---tour--- | d'prayers-----dand- |
| rpraise-ma--frise,-sLike- | lgrate--tful-d'in--r'cense- |
| d'to---tthe--- | d'skies.----- |
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- Key
- D major
- Doh
- D
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (D)
- Range
- d to r' (D to E, a ninth)
- Tune
- DARWALL
- Words
- Otis Ainsworth Skinner
- Music
- John Darwall
Melody from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune DARWALL by John Darwall (1731–1789); words by Otis Ainsworth Skinner (1807–1861). 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 D · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in D major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Thou Fount of love and grace,
Whose throne is fixed on high,
Unveil thy smiling face,
And to our souls draw nigh;
And let our prayers and praise arise,
Like grateful incense to the skies.
This house to thee we give —
Thine may it ever be —
Here bid the sinner live,
Here set the captive free,
Here let thy word its beams display
And safely guide to endless day.
Here may the stricken heart
By truth be cheered and blessed,
And here thy grace impart,
To all by grief oppressed —
And streams of peace and plenty flow,
To all who seek thy joy to know.
Long may these walls resound
With thy salvation, Lord,
And grace to all abound,
Who hear thy holy word —
And youth and age their offerings raise.
In songs of ardent, cheerful praise.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum D 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 (D), on the word “Thou”, 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
Otis Ainsworth Skinner wrote these words. They were printed in Hymns for Christian Devotion, compiled by John G. Adams and Edwin H. Chapin (Boston, 1846), as hymn 701 of its twenty-second edition (1853), “Dedication Hymn”.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Hallelujah Metre (6.6.6.6.8.8), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to DARWALL; any other Hallelujah Metre tune fits them as well.
- Words: Otis Ainsworth Skinner (1807–1861)
- Music (1770): John Darwall (1731–1789)
Melody from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune DARWALL by John Darwall (1731–1789); words by Otis Ainsworth Skinner (1807–1861). 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: A Worldling Spent Each Day, All, from the Sun's Uprise, Amazing, Beauteous Change, Before Elisha's Gate, Encouraged by Thy Word, Hark! What Celestial Notes, I Have No Tears to Shed, Israel in Ancient Days, Lord of the Worlds Above, On What Has Now Been Sown, Rejoice, the Lord Is King, To Thee, Our God, We Fly, Ye Realms Below the Skies, Young Men and Maidens, Raise.
Questions about Thou Fount of Love and Grace
What is the doh of Thou Fount of Love and Grace?
In this version, in D major, doh is D. 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 Thou Fount of Love and Grace start on?
It starts on d (D in D major), a pickup on the word “Thou” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is Thou Fount of Love and Grace in the public domain?
Yes. Otis Ainsworth Skinner died in 1861, John Darwall died in 1789; the words were in print by 1853 and the music in 1770. 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.