TonalicsJOURNALOpen Tuner
‹ Flute songs
left handright handfoot jointB♭T123G♯B♭1D2D♯3E♭C♯Chead joint · left handright hand · foot jointB♭T123G♯B♭1D2D♯3E♭C♯C
C4concert pitch1st octavegentle air: the bottom of the tube
SongsJolly Old Saint Nicholas
Play a different song (36)
Play along
  1. 3'
  2. 3'
  3. 3'
  4. 3'
  5. 2'
  6. 2'
  7. 2'
  8. 1'
  9. 1'
  10. 1'
  11. 1'
  12. 3'
  13. 6
  14. 6
  15. 6
  16. 6
  17. 5
  18. 5
  19. 1'
  20. 7
  21. 1'
  22. 2'
  23. 3'
  24. 2'
  25. 3'
  26. 3'
  27. 3'
  28. 3'
  29. 2'
  30. 2'
  31. 2'
  32. 1'
  33. 1'
  34. 1'
  35. 1'
  36. 3'
  37. 6
  38. 6
  39. 6
  40. 6
  41. 5
  42. 5
  43. 1'
  44. 2'
  45. 1'
  46. 2'
  47. 3'
  48. 1'

American, 19th century; the music was first published in 1874. Public domain.

37 notes · C4–C7 · three octaves · 37 notes · The standard concert flute: the foot joint ends at middle C.

Tap a note, or slide along them to slur from note to note in one breath. On a keyboard the letters on the notes are the ones to press — Q is the D above middle C and they climb a semitone at a time.

FluteFree · printable · plays in your browser

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas — Flute Notes

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas, written out for the flute as letter notes with the fingering drawn under each one and set up above on the C foot. Press Play to hear it, Practice to learn it one note at a time — the flute waits for you — or Play along to keep time with it.

  • Notes48, 6 pitches
  • RangeD5–B5
  • Key hereG major
  • Tempo100 bpm · about 19 s
  • LevelEasy

Can a flute play Jolly Old Saint Nicholas?

Yes — every one on this page plays it. The check is made note by note against what each one can actually sound. Where the tune does not fit as the library writes it, another key or octave is tried, and the table says which; where nothing fits, it names the notes that are missing.

  • C foot✓ Plays as writtenIn G major, D5–B5 · loaded above
  • B foot✓ Plays as writtenIn G major, D5–B5 · load it

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas: flute notes

The large line is the note, and the drawing is its fingering — a filled hole or key is one that is down. 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

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas — flute notes (C foot) · 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.

  • DD5×4
  • EE5×8
  • F♯F♯5×1
  • GG5×13
  • AA5×10
  • BB5×12

What to expect on a flute

  • It runs from D5 to B5, a major sixth, using 6 different notes. That leaves 14 semitones unused below and 13 above.
  • 85% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a fifth, B5 to E5, at note 13.
  • The whole tune is played on faster air: the air speed never has to change.

About the tune

An American children’s song whose words appeared as a poem in the 1860s. The music was first published in 1874 and is generally attributed to James R. Murray, the composer of the “Mueller” tune for Away in a Manger.

American, 19th century; the music was first published in 1874. Public domain. The notes follow Douglas D. Anderson, The Hymns and Carols of Christmas (sequence released to the public domain), cross-checked against 2 other transcriptions. More about Jolly Old Saint Nicholas →

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas 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 flute

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

Playing it on a real flute?

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

🎙 Open the Flute Tuner