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SongsJolly Old Saint Nicholas
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2 more songs need notes this instrument does not have. Changing the size or key brings some of them into reach.

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

34 strings · C2–A6 · C major · The floor harp: four and a half octaves down to C2. With every lever down it is C2–A♭6.

Tap a string, or sweep across them for the glissando. On a keyboard the letters on the strings are the ones to press — they follow the strings left to right. Each string has a lever above it that raises that one string a semitone; the key menu is a shortcut for moving several at once.

HarpFree · printable · plays in your browser

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas — Harp Letter Notes

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas, written out for the harp as letter notes, phrase by phrase and set up above on the 34-string. Press Play to hear it, Practice to learn it one note at a time — the harp waits for you — or Play along to keep time with it.

  • Notes48, 6 pitches
  • RangeG4–E5
  • Key hereC major
  • Tempo100 bpm · about 19 s
  • LevelEasy

Can a harp play Jolly Old Saint Nicholas?

Yes — every size 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.

  • 22-string✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, G4–E5 · load it
  • 26-string✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, G4–E5 · load it
  • 34-string✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, G4–E5 · loaded above

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas: harp letter notes

The large line is the string’s note; the small line under it is its number in the scale. 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 — harp letter notes (34-string) · 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.

  • G5×4
  • A6×8
  • B7×1
  • C1×13
  • D2×10
  • E3×12

What to expect on a harp

  • It runs from G4 to E5, a major sixth, using 6 different notes. That leaves 31 semitones unused below and 17 above.
  • 85% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a fifth, E5 to A4, at note 13.
  • It is played on strings 19 to 24 of 34, 6 strings in all.
  • Set the levers for C major before you start; nothing has to be flipped mid-tune.

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 harp

All 34 harp songs · Christmas songs for harp · The online harp on its own

Playing it on a real harp?

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

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