Ye Boundless Realms of Joy in Tonic Solfa
Ye Boundless Realms of Joy in Tonic Solfa to BELSIZE, doh is F: the solfa with the words, staff notation, 2 verses and a piano.
The solfa with the words
| mYe- | sbound--dless-mrealms-rof- | djoy,-----dEx-- |
| malt-l,your-dMak--t,er's- | l,name;-----mHis- |
| rpraise-ryour-ssongs-feem-- | mploy-----sA-- |
| sbove-rthe-mstar--fery- | sframe:-----lYour- |
| lvoi--deces-rraise,-lYe- | lche--sru--mbim-dAnd- |
| dser--fa--mphim,-rTo- | dsing---t,his--- |
| dpraise.----- |
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- Key
- F major
- Doh
- F
- Time
- 4/4
- Starts on
- m (A)
- Range
- l, to l (D to D, an octave)
- Tune
- BELSIZE
- Words
- Nahum Tate, Nicholas Brady
Tune BELSIZE by James William Elliott (1833–1915); words by Nahum Tate (1652–1715) and Nicholas Brady (1659–1726). 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 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
Ye boundless realms of joy,
Exalt your Maker's name;
His praise your songs employ
Above the starry frame:
Your voices raise,
Ye cherubim
And seraphim,
To sing his praise.
Let all adore the Lord,
And praise his holy name,
By whose almighty word
They all from nothing came;
And all shall last,
From changes free;
His firm decree
Stands ever fast.
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 m (A), on the word “Ye”, 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 de. 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
Nahum Tate and Nicholas Brady wrote these words. They were printed in Hymns for Christian Devotion, compiled by John G. Adams and Edwin H. Chapin (Boston, 1846), as hymn 160 of its twenty-second edition (1853), “Praise from Heaven and Earth”.
The book printed the words without tunes, marked Hallelujah Metre (6.6.6.6.4.4.4.4), to be sung to any tune of that metre. This page sets them to BELSIZE; any other Hallelujah Metre tune fits them as well.
- Words: Nahum Tate (1652–1715)
- Words: Nicholas Brady (1659–1726)
- Music (1892): James William Elliott (1833–1915)
Tune BELSIZE by James William Elliott (1833–1915); words by Nahum Tate (1652–1715) and Nicholas Brady (1659–1726).
Sung to the same tune: Mark the Soft Falling Snow, O Zion, Tune Thy Voice.
Questions about Ye Boundless Realms of Joy
What is the doh of Ye Boundless Realms of Joy?
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 Ye Boundless Realms of Joy start on?
It starts on m (A in F major), a pickup on the word “Ye” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to m.
Is Ye Boundless Realms of Joy in the public domain?
Yes. Nahum Tate died in 1715, Nicholas Brady died in 1726, James William Elliott died in 1915; the words were in print by 1853 and the music in 1892. 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.