Jesus Leads the Way: hymn tune in Tonic Solfa

Jesus Leads the Way, the hymn tune, in Tonic Solfa (doh is Bb): the solfa, staff notation and a piano to sing along with.

Download the solfa (PDF)A4, free to print and share with your choir

Key: Bb major
Doh: Bb
Time: 4/4
Starts on: s (F)
Range: d to f' (B♭ to E♭)
Metre: Irregular
Music: John Robson Sweney
Also called: Awake! Awake!

Melody from the Christian Classics Ethereal Hymnary (CCEH, public domain); tune JESUS LEADS THE WAY by John Robson Sweney (1837–1899). Sources and licences.

The solfa

Doh is Bb4/4

d'--sd'--s

d'-,mf-,sl-,sm-,d

s--lt--d'

r'-,de'r'-,m'r'--s

d'--sd'--s

d'-,mf-,sl-,sm-,d

l-,sel-,td'-,td'-,r'

m'-r'-d'-__

s---m-m'-,d'

s---m-__

f---r-,ft-,l

s--ls-,fm-,f

s---m-m'-,d'

s---m-d'-

t-,lt-,d'r'-,d't-,l

s-----__

f'--r't-,sl-,t

d'-,td'-,r'm'---

f'--r't-,sl-,t

d'-,td'-,r'm'---

l-,sel-,td'-,tl-

t-,let-,d'r'-,d't-

l-,sel-,td'-,td'-,r'

m'-r'-d'-

The solfa line by line

The same solfa as plain text, easy to copy into your own notes or a WhatsApp message to the choir. To print it, download the solfa as a PDF.

Doh is Bb · 4/4

| s | d' - - s d' - - s | d' -,m f -,s l -,s m -,d |

| s - - l t - - d' | r' -,de' r' -,m' r' - - s |

| d' - - s d' - - s | d' -,m f -,s l -,s m -,d |

| l -,se l -,t d' -,t d' -,r' | m' - r' - d' - _ _ |

| s - - - m - m' -,d' | s - - - m - _ _ |

| f - - - r -,f t -,l | s - - l s -,f m -,f |

| s - - - m - m' -,d' | s - - - m - d' - |

| t -,l t -,d' r' -,d' t -,l | s - - - - - _ _ |

| f' - - r' t -,s l -,t | d' -,t d' -,r' m' - - - |

| l -,se l -,t d' -,t l - | t -,le t -,d' r' -,d' t - |

| l -,se l -,t d' -,t d' -,r' | m' - r' - d' - |

Staff notation

The melody on the treble staff in Bb major.

The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.

About the tune

Music (1883): John Robson Sweney (1837–1899)

Metre: Irregular.

Melody from the Christian Classics Ethereal Hymnary (CCEH, public domain); tune JESUS LEADS THE WAY by John Robson Sweney (1837–1899). The CCEH gives its tunes as four-part scores; this page has the melody only, read from its MIDI file and checked against its incipit, and NoteFusion's engine wrote the solfa from the notes. It has not yet been checked against a printed hymn book.

New to solfa? Read how to read Tonic Solfa and how to find the doh of a song.

Questions about Jesus Leads the Way

What is the doh of Jesus Leads the Way?

In this version, in Bb major, doh is Bb. 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 Jesus Leads the Way start on?

It starts on s (F in Bb major), a pickup before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to s.

Is Jesus Leads the Way in the public domain?

Yes. John Robson Sweney died in 1899; the tune was first published in 1883. Everyone named died before 1955 and it was published before 1929, so the tune is out of copyright in Nigeria, the UK, the EU and the United States. Modern arrangements of it can still be under copyright.