When Morning Gilds the Skies in Tonic Solfa
When Morning Gilds the Skies in Tonic Solfa to LAUDES DOMINI: the solfa with the words, staff notation, the six verses, and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| mWhen- | fmorn--sing-lgilds-d'the- | tskies,---lMy-sheart- |
| la--twak--d'ing-m'cries- | r'_-----d'May- |
| tJe--d'sus-lChrist--sbe | spraised!-----sA-- |
| slike-d'at-twork-d'and- | sprayer,-----sTo- |
| sJe--d'sus-tI-d're-- | spair;-----sMay- |
| sJe----d'sus--- | d'Christ---r'be--- |
| d'praised!----- |
Got your choir's recording? Get it in solfa →
Download the solfa (PDF)A4, free to print and share with your choir
- Key
- Bb major
- Doh
- Bb
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- m (D)
- Range
- m to m' (D to D, an octave)
- Tune
- LAUDES DOMINI
- Words
- Anonymous German (Beim frühen Morgenlicht), Edward Caswall
- Music
- Joseph Barnby
Tune LAUDES DOMINI by Joseph Barnby (1838–1896); words by Anonymous German (Beim frühen Morgenlicht); translated by Edward Caswall (1814–1878). 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 Bb · 4/4
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in Bb major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
When morning gilds the skies,
My heart awaking cries:
May Jesus Christ be praised!
Alike at work and prayer,
To Jesus I repair;
May Jesus Christ be praised!
Does sadness fill my mind?
A solace here I find,
May Jesus Christ be praised!
Or fades my earthly bliss?
My comfort still is this,
May Jesus Christ be praised!
When sleep her balm denies,
My silent spirit sighs,
May Jesus Christ be praised!
When evil thoughts molest,
With this I shield my breast:
May Jesus Christ be praised!
The night becomes as day
When from the heart we say:
May Jesus Christ be praised!
The pow’rs of darkness fear
When this sweet chant they hear:
May Jesus Christ be praised!
In heav’n’s eternal bliss
The loveliest strain is this,
May Jesus Christ be praised!
Let earth, and sea, and sky
From depth to height reply,
May Jesus Christ be praised!
Be this, while life is mine,
My canticle divine:
May Jesus Christ be praised!
Sing this eternal song
Through all the ages long:
May Jesus Christ be praised!
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum Bb 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 m (D), on the word “When”, 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
Edward Caswall’s translation of the anonymous German hymn “Beim frühen Morgenlicht” was first published in Henry Formby’s Catholic Hymns (London, 1854). Joseph Barnby wrote the tune LAUDES DOMINI for it in Hymns Ancient and Modern (1868).
- Words: Anonymous German (Beim frühen Morgenlicht)
- Translated (1854): Edward Caswall (1814–1878)
- Music (1868): Joseph Barnby (1838–1896)
Tune LAUDES DOMINI by Joseph Barnby (1838–1896); words by Anonymous German (Beim frühen Morgenlicht); translated by Edward Caswall (1814–1878).
Questions about When Morning Gilds the Skies
What is the doh of When Morning Gilds the Skies?
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 When Morning Gilds the Skies start on?
It starts on m (D in Bb major), a pickup on the word “When” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to m.
Is When Morning Gilds the Skies in the public domain?
Yes. Edward Caswall died in 1878, Joseph Barnby died in 1896; the words were first published in 1854 and the music in 1868. 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.