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SongsAmazing Grace
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  1. 5,
  2. 1
  3. 3
  4. 1
  5. 3
  6. 2
  7. 1
  8. 6,
  9. 5,
  10. 5,
  11. 1
  12. 3
  13. 1
  14. 3
  15. 2
  16. 5

Traditional; "New Britain" melody, published 1835. Public domain. The first half of the verse.

4 strings · C2–A3 open · E5 up the A string in thumb position · Perfect fifths, exactly an octave below a viola. The C string is the deepest note in a string quartet.

Tap a string, or slide along a string and the pitch follows your finger, under a bow that never stops. On a keyboard the letters on the strings are the ones to press — they run down the strings, the A at the top — hold a key and the note holds.

CelloFree · printable · plays in your browser

Amazing Grace — Cello Notes

Amazing Grace (the first half of the verse), written out for the cello as every note with its string and how far up it. Press Play to hear it, Practice to learn it one note at a time — the cello waits for you — or Play along to keep time with it.

  • Notes16, 6 pitches
  • RangeG3–G4
  • Key hereC major
  • Tempo76 bpm · about 17 s
  • LevelIntermediate

Can a cello play Amazing Grace?

✓ Plays as written Every note of it is on the cello, in C major from G3 to G4. The check is made note by note against what the instrument can actually sound.

Amazing Grace: cello notes

The large line is the note; the small line under it is the string, and how many semitones above its open note to stop it. A dash holds the note another beat, an underline is half a beat, and a dot beside a note makes it half as long again. Each line is one phrase.

▶ Play it above

Amazing Grace — cello notes · tonalics.com

The 6 notes it uses

Lowest to highest, with how many times each is played. Learn these 6 and you can play the whole tune.

  • GD·5×3
  • AA·0×1
  • CA·3×5
  • DA·5×2
  • EA·7×4
  • GA·10×1

What to expect on a cello

  • It runs from G3 to G4, an octave, using 6 different notes. That leaves 19 semitones unused below and 9 above.
  • 33% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a fourth, G3 to C4, at note 2.
  • It is played on 2 strings (D and A), crossing between strings 3 times.
  • 1 note is an open string, and the highest stop is 10 semitones above the open string.

About the tune

The words are John Newton’s, written in England in the 1770s; the tune they are sung to is an American folk melody called “New Britain”, joined to them by William Walker in his shape-note tunebook Southern Harmony in 1835.

Traditional; "New Britain" melody, published 1835. Public domain. The first half of the verse. More about Amazing Grace →

Amazing Grace on other instruments

The same melody, in each instrument’s own notation. It is not offered for the handpan or ocarina, which do not have the notes.

More songs for the cello

All 36 cello songs · Christmas songs for cello · The online cello on its own

Playing it on a real cello?

If it sounds wrong, check the instrument before the notes. The cello tuner listens through your microphone and names what each note is actually sounding.

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