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About Numbered Notation

All steps
  1. The numbers are the notes of a scale
  2. “1=C” tells you where to start
  3. Dots make a note higher or lower
  4. How long each note lasts
  5. 0 means rest
  6. Bar lines and the time signature
  7. Curves: ties and slurs
  8. The words sit under the numbers
  9. Repeat signs and 1. 2. endings
  10. Minor keys: “6=A”
  11. Put it together: a line of a hymn
  12. Check yourself
  13. Try it on a hymn

The numbers are the notes of a scale

Numbered notation (jianpu, 简谱) writes a melody as numbers instead of notes on a staff. You do not need to read music: take one small step at a time and press Play on any example to hear it while each number lights up. Sound only starts when you press Play.

Instead of notes on a staff, each note is a number from 1 to 7. They are the seven steps of the scale you already know: do re mi fa sol la ti. After 7 the scale starts again at 1.

The seven numbers with their names. Press Play and say each name as its number lights up.
Sing along: do re mi fa sol, and back down to do.

If you can sing do re mi, you can already sing every number from 1 to 7. Tap or click any number to hear just that note.

“1=C” tells you where to start

At the top left of the sheet you will see something like 1=C. It means the number 1 (do) is the note C, and every other number counts up from there. 1=G means do is G, so the whole tune sits a little higher. Nothing else changes: the same numbers make the same shape, only higher or lower.

1=C: do is C.
1=G: the same numbers, starting higher.

Not sure where C is? On a piano it is the white key just left of the two black keys. Or ignore the letter and start on any note that is comfortable for your voice: the tune only has to keep its shape. The − and + key buttons on a hymn page shift the key for you.

Dots make a note higher or lower

A dot above a number means one octave higher. A dot below means one octave lower. Two dots mean two octaves. No dot is the middle range, where most of a tune lives. The name stays the same; only the height changes.

The same number at three heights: dot below, no dot, dot above.
A tune that climbs: it starts on a low sol and ends on a high do.

How long each note lasts

Tap your foot at a steady pace: each tap is a beat. A plain number lasts one beat, so you sing a new number on every tap. Dashes, lines and dots change that.

A plain number is one beat

Four numbers, four beats: one number for each tap.

A dash holds the note longer

Each dash adds one beat. The 5 lasts two beats and the 3 lasts four.

A line underneath makes it shorter

One line is half a beat, so two underlined numbers share one beat. (Two lines are a quarter of a beat.)

A dot after makes it half as long again

A dot after a number adds half its length. The first 5 lasts a beat and a half, and the short 3 fills the rest of the second beat.

0 means rest

A 0 is silence for one beat. Keep counting and keep tapping, but do not sing. Dashes after a 0 make the silence longer, just as they hold a note longer.

Sing 1 3 5, stay quiet for one beat, then come back down. Rests light up too, so you can feel the pause.

Bar lines and the time signature

Tall lines cut the music into bars, each holding the same number of beats. The two small numbers at the start, like 4/4 or 3/4, say how many: 4/4 is four beats in every bar, 3/4 is three. The first beat of each bar is the strongest, so lean on it a little. A double line with a thick edge marks the end.

4/4: count 1 2 3 4, 1 2 3 4. The first beat of each bar sounds a little louder.
3/4: count 1 2 3, 1 2 3, the lilt of a waltz.

Curves: ties and slurs

A curve over numbers joins them. If it joins two of the same number, it is a tie: sing the note once and hold it for both. If it joins different numbers, it is a slur: sing them all on one syllable, gliding from one to the next.

A tie: the 5 is sung once and held across the bar line, six beats in all.
A slur: “Him” is sung on two notes, 3 then 2.

The words sit under the numbers

Each number gets one syllable, written right underneath it. A short dash after part of a word means the word carries on under the next number. If a number has nothing under it, it belongs to a curve or a dash: keep singing the syllable you are on.

Read left to right, one syllable for each number: Twin-kle, twin-kle, lit-tle star.

Repeat signs and 1. 2. endings

A bar line with two dots, :|, means go back and sing that part again, from the matching |: sign (or from the start if there is none). Sometimes the repeat has two endings. Sing ending 1. the first time; on the repeat, skip it and sing ending 2. instead.

Play it: you hear the 1. ending, the repeat, then the 2. ending. Watch the highlight jump back.

Minor keys: “6=A”

A song in a minor key, which usually sounds more serious or tender, is labeled like 6=A instead of 1=C. It means the number 6 (la) is the home note, here A. The numbers keep their usual names; the tune simply feels at home on 6 and often ends there. 6=A uses the same notes as 1=C.

It starts and ends on 6 (la), the home note. Listen to the darker colour.

Put it together: a line of a hymn

This is the first line of hymn 8, “Praise God, from whom all blessings flow”, written in numbered notation. Try the slow tempo first, and sing the words as each number lights up.

1=G in 4/4. Three silent beats, then “Praise” on beat 4. The dots under 7, 6 and 5 mean those notes dip one octave lower.

Check yourself

Four quick questions, with no score and no pressure. Tap an answer to see right away why it is right or wrong. You can always try another answer.

Tap the number that is held the longest.

Tap the 5 that is one octave higher than the first 5.

What does a 0 mean?

Under 1=G, which note is the number 1?

Try it on a hymn

You opened this from a hymn that has a Numbered view, so you can try it right now.

  1. Look at the top left of the sheet: the key, such as 1=D, and the time signature, such as 3/4.
  2. Find the first number and sing it. Then follow the numbers from left to right with the words underneath, one syllable for each number. Press Play in the player to hear the recording while you follow.
  3. Letters above the numbers (C, G7) are chords for a guitarist or pianist. Ignore them while you learn the tune.
  4. To be guided, open the Learn tab and press Play. Under Display, set Learn notation to Numbered (or choose Numbered on the Lead Sheet tab first). For hymns that have numbered lines, each line of numbers scrolls into view in time with the recording while a bouncing ball follows the words; other hymns show the piano notation there. The Speed menu slows it down.

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Down from His glory

Praise of the Lord His Incarnation

English82
1
Down from His glory,
Ever living story,
My God and Savior came,
And Jesus was His name.
Born in a manger,
To His own a stranger,
A Man of sorrows, tears and agony.
 
O how I love Him! How I adore Him!
My breath, my sunshine, my all in all!
The great Creator became my Savior,
And all God’s fullness dwelleth in Him.
2
What condescension,
Bringing us redemption;
That in the dead of night,
Not one faint hope in sight,
God, gracious, tender,
Laid aside His splendor,
Stooping to woo, to win, to save my soul.
3
Without reluctance,
Flesh and blood His substance
He took the form of man,
Revealed the hidden plan.
O glorious myst’ry,
Sacrifice of Calv’ry,
And now I know Thou art the great “I AM.”

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Kitty Joubert

Bloemfontein, Free State, South Africa

Jan 14, 2013

My day is just not the same if I didn't sing this song. Corine, Anne Marie and Johan like to sing with me and we ENJOY the song. O how I Iove HIM! O how I adore Him, my Lord Jesus!

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Donny

Dec 19, 2012

Amazing.

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Fran

Lake City, Fl, United States

Dec 7, 2012

Beautiful! Our Lord and Savior is beautiful and glorious. "No greater love hath any man than this, that a man would lay down his life for his friends."

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Jimmy Melegrito

Chula Vista, California, United States

Oct 15, 2012

I'm going to sing this song about my only Savior and Lord. Take note that I say 'Savior and Lord'. Not Lord and Savior. I firmly believe that before I could serve Him as my Lord I must accept Him first as my Savior - surrendering to His saving ways and means and what He has done for me. Now what must I do for Him as my Lord. This is a relationship formula: Sinner and Savior; Servant and Lord.

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Adriana Scheffer

Victoria, BC, Canada

Sep 17, 2012

This song makes my heart to worship my wonderful Saviour. What a glorious message it tells. Yes, how is it possible that our great Creator would stoop to make us fallen people His own children. Oh how I praise Him, how I adore Him, my Redeemer.

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J K Petoskey

North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, United States

Apr 29, 2012

A grand anthem of the apostolic church moves the soul and challenges the intellect all at once. A sermon in a song that makes you feel something, makes you think about something, and makes you want to do something; all 3 critical elements of a sermon.

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Sylvia Lynn

Pittsburgh, PA, United States

Apr 15, 2012

Many Yeshua y loving kith and kin sang this powerful hymn beautifully; but:, THE HAWAIIANS threw lightning bolts through me!! WOW. I'm spoiled and finished forever more. Thank You precious Lamb of God; Whom took my sins forever away. Oh How I Love You, how I adore You; may I ever kiss your feet until I see You UP THERE. ..Thanks again Sweetness, for all my 6 Children, 11 Grands with 2 Greats! My quiver is full and over flowing.............. OORAH!!................Sylvia&Mark (Syl)

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Nina Tryon

New Britain, CT, United States

Feb 11, 2012

Over 50 now, I grew up in a tiny town & remember going to houses for church with probably 30 -40 people. One lady used to sing this often & I loved it. It says SO MUCH!

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Tom Cooper

Mason, MI, United States

Jan 21, 2012

While reading and meditating upon the Lord Jesus the words of this Hymn came to my mind as I thought of my Savior.

His Birth: There Was No Room
His Life: HE SOUGHT NO ROOM
HIS SORROW: HE NEEDED NO ROOM (GETHSEMANE)
HIS MINISTRY: CHOSE NO COMMON ROOM (UPPER ROOM)

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Joyce Vieselmeyer Baker

Nampa, Idaho, United States

Dec 5, 2011

William Booth-Clibborn was a very close family friend who spent numerous days in our home. The glory of the Lord portrayed in "Down From His Glory" was what the lyrics author lived & preached. He was a large man who lived for the Lord but what full fun & humor. His dramatic preaching style made each sermon unforgettable and helped develop my deep love for the Lord. I under 5 yrs. of age when he came to town to hold meeting. My parents were immediately moved by the Holy Spirit through his teaching. As he became a 'member' of our family he told us kids to call him Uncle Booth, however, due respect we most often referred to him as Brother Booth. He loved to stand over the kitchen stove and dictate to my mother how to cook his favor cow tongue and how to steep his tea perfectly. On one of his overseas journeys he sent us a tea cozy from Japan. It is not washable and continues to remain in my china hutch with tea stains on it. Brother Booth loved hunting ducks. We lived on a dairy farm with a creek running through it. Brother Booth came to stay several weeks in December so he could hunt and work on getting his Christmas Letter out to over 1,000 locations. He welcomed me to sit around the dining room table to lick stamps, envelopes and apply address labels. Before turning in for the night he would pick up his violin to serenade us with heavenly music. He encourage me to play the piano and sing along. He was my greatest inspiration to sing in church. Of course "Down From His Glory" was the favorite to sing. I could write a book about his visits to our home and us to his. I didn't like the noise, lights & sirens from his busy street near The Lloyd's Center in Portland. I was too much of a country girl.

My mother passed away May, 2002. William Booth-Clibborn was mentioned at her memorial and "Down From His Glory" closed the service. What a heritage he left us!

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