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SongsYankee Doodle
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Traditional, sung in the American colonies before the Revolution (18th century). Public domain. Written an octave up, so its low notes fit a 17-key.

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

Yankee Doodle — Cello Notes

Yankee Doodle, 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.

  • Notes28, 7 pitches
  • RangeG3–F4
  • Key hereC major
  • Tempo120 bpm · about 16 s
  • LevelEasy

Can a cello play Yankee Doodle?

✓ Plays as written Every note of it is on the cello, in C major from G3 to F4. The check is made note by note against what the instrument can actually sound.

Yankee Doodle: 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

Yankee Doodle — cello notes · tonalics.com

The 7 notes it uses

Lowest to highest, with how many times each is played. Learn these 7 and you can play the whole tune.

  • GD·5×2
  • AA·0×1
  • BA·2×3
  • CA·3×11
  • DA·5×5
  • EA·7×5
  • FA·8×1

What to expect on a cello

  • It runs from G3 to F4, a minor seventh, using 7 different notes. That leaves 19 semitones unused below and 11 above.
  • 78% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a fifth, D4 to G3, at note 8.
  • It is played on 2 strings (D and A), crossing between strings 4 times.
  • 1 note is an open string, and the highest stop is 8 semitones above the open string.

About the tune

The tune was already old when British troops sang it to mock colonial militia before the American Revolution; the colonists took it up as their own, and it has been a patriotic song ever since. It is the state song of Connecticut.

Traditional, sung in the American colonies before the Revolution (18th century). Public domain. Written an octave up, so its low notes fit a 17-key. More about Yankee Doodle →

Yankee Doodle on other instruments

The same melody, in each instrument’s own notation. It is not offered for the guzheng or handpan, 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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