When I Survey the Wondrous Cross (Hamburg) in Tonic Solfa
When I Survey the Wondrous Cross in Tonic Solfa: the solfa line by line with the words, staff notation, all 5 verses, and a piano to sing along with.
- Key
- F major
- Doh
- F
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- d (F)
- Range
- t, to f (E to B♭)
- Tune
- HAMBURG
- Words
- Isaac Watts
- Music
- Lowell Mason
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune HAMBURG by Lowell Mason (1792–1872); words by Isaac Watts (1674–1748). Sources and licences.
The solfa with the words
| dWhen---dI-rsur-- | mvey---rthe-m_- |
| fwon----mdrous-r_- | mcross------- |
| mOn---mwhich-mthe- | fPrince---mof-r_- |
| dGlo----t,ry-d_- | rdied,------- |
| dMy---drich--rest- | mgain---rI-m_- |
| fcount---mbut-r_- | mloss,------- |
| mAnd---mpour-mcon-- | rtempt---don--- |
| rall---mmy-d_- | dpride.------- |
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 F · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in F major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of Glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss,
And pour contempt on all my pride.
Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast,
Save in the death of Christ my God!
All the vain things that charm me most,
I sacrifice them to His blood.
See from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down!
Did e'er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?
His dying crimson, like a robe,
Spreads o'er His body on the tree;
Then I am dead to all the globe,
And all the globe is dead to me.
Were the whole realm of nature mine,
That were a present far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum F 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 (F).
- 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 t — only 5 different notes, so it is a good one for a choir new to solfa. 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 Isaac Watts, first published in 1707. The tune, HAMBURG, is by Lowell Mason (1824). This version of the melody and the words comes from the Open Hymnal Project.
- Words (1707): Isaac Watts (1674–1748)
- Music (1824): Lowell Mason (1792–1872)
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune HAMBURG by Lowell Mason (1792–1872); words by Isaac Watts (1674–1748). 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.
Questions about When I Survey the Wondrous Cross (Hamburg)
What is the doh of When I Survey the Wondrous Cross (Hamburg)?
In this version, in F major, doh is F. 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 When I Survey the Wondrous Cross (Hamburg) start on?
It starts on d (F in F major). Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is When I Survey the Wondrous Cross (Hamburg) in the public domain?
Yes. Isaac Watts died in 1748, Lowell Mason died in 1872; the words were first published in 1707 and the music in 1824. 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.