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SongsGoing Home (Largo, New World Symphony)
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  1. 3,
  2. 5,
  3. 5,
  4. 3,
  5. 2,
  6. 1,
  7. 2,
  8. 3,
  9. 5,
  10. 3,
  11. 2,
  12. 3,
  13. 5,
  14. 5,
  15. 3,
  16. 2,
  17. 1,
  18. 2,
  19. 3,
  20. 2,
  21. 1,
  22. 1,

Antonín Dvořák, Symphony No. 9 “From the New World”, second movement, 1893. The melody is public domain; the later “Goin’ Home” lyric is not used here.

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

Going Home (New World Largo) — Cello Notes

Going Home (Largo, New World Symphony) (the opening theme), 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.

  • Notes22, 4 pitches
  • RangeC3–G3
  • Key hereC major
  • Tempo66 bpm · about 29 s
  • LevelEasy

Can a cello play Going Home (New World Largo)?

✓ Plays as written Every note of it is on the cello, in C major from C3 to G3. The check is made note by note against what the instrument can actually sound.

Going Home (New World Largo): 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

Going Home (Largo, New World Symphony) — cello notes · tonalics.com

The 4 notes it uses

Lowest to highest, with how many times each is played. Learn these 4 and you can play the whole tune.

  • CG·5×4
  • DD·0×6
  • ED·2×7
  • GD·5×5

What to expect on a cello

  • It runs from C3 to G3, a fifth, using 4 different notes. That leaves 12 semitones unused below and 21 above.
  • 71% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a minor third, E3 to G3, at note 2.
  • It is played on 2 strings (G and D), crossing between strings 5 times.
  • 6 notes are an open string, and the highest stop is 5 semitones above the open string — it never leaves the bottom of the neck.

About the tune

This is the cor anglais melody that opens the slow movement of Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9, “From the New World”, written in New York in 1893 while he was director of the National Conservatory. It sounds like a spiritual and is often taken for one, but the tune is Dvořák’s own.

Antonín Dvořák, Symphony No. 9 “From the New World”, second movement, 1893. The melody is public domain; the later “Goin’ Home” lyric is not used here. More about Going Home (New World Largo) →

Going Home (New World Largo) on other instruments

The same melody, in each instrument’s own notation.

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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