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β€Ή Guzheng songs
SongsMary Had a Little Lamb
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29 more songs need notes this instrument does not have. Changing the size or key brings some of them into reach.

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Traditional; Lowell Mason setting, 1831. Public domain.

21 strings Β· D2–D6 Β· D pentatonic Β· The modern standard β€” four octaves of D-pentatonic plus a top D.

Tap a string, or sweep across them for a glissando, or drag down a string to bend it. On a keyboard the letters on the strings are the ones to press β€” they follow the strings left to right.

GuzhengFree Β· printable Β· plays in your browser

Mary Had a Little Lamb β€” Guzheng Tabs

Mary Had a Little Lamb, written out for the guzheng as number tabs with the letter under every note. Press Play to hear it, Practice to learn it one note at a time β€” the guzheng waits for you β€” or Play along to keep time with it.

  • Notes26, 4 pitches
  • RangeD4–A4
  • Key hereD major
  • Tempo104 bpm Β· about 17 s
  • LevelEasy

Can a guzheng play Mary Had a Little Lamb?

βœ“ Plays as written Every note of it is on the guzheng, in D major from D4 to A4. The check is made note by note against what the instrument can actually sound.

Mary Had a Little Lamb: guzheng tabs

The large line is the note’s number in the scale; the small line under it is the string to pluck. 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.

β–Ά Play it above

Mary Had a Little Lamb β€” guzheng tabs Β· 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.

  • 1str. 11Γ—3
  • 2str. 10Γ—10
  • 3str. 9Γ—11
  • 5str. 8Γ—2

What to expect on a guzheng

  • It runs from D4 to A4, a fifth, using 4 different notes. That leaves 24 semitones unused below and 17 above.
  • 92% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a minor third, Fβ™―4 to A4, at note 12.
  • It is played on strings 8 to 11 of 21, 4 strings in all.

About the tune

The poem is by Sarah Josepha Hale, published in Boston in 1830; the hymn composer Lowell Mason set it to this tune the following year. In 1877 Thomas Edison recited its opening lines to test his phonograph, which makes it the first verse ever recorded and played back.

Traditional; Lowell Mason setting, 1831. Public domain. More about Mary Had a Little Lamb β†’

Mary Had a Little Lamb on other instruments

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

More songs for the guzheng

All 7 guzheng songs Β· The online guzheng on its own

Playing it on a real guzheng?

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

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