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SongsFrère Jacques
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4 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 French round, published 1780. Public domain. The low G of “ding, dang, dong” is taken an octave up, where a 17-key has it.

17 tines · C4–E6 · C major · The standard. Almost every tab you find is written for this.

Tap a tine, or drag across them for a glissando. On a keyboard the letters on the tines are the ones to press — they follow the tines left to right.

KalimbaFree · printable · plays in your browser

Frère Jacques — Kalimba Tabs

Frère Jacques, written out for the kalimba as number tabs with the letter under every note and set up above on the 17-key. Press Play to hear it, Practice to learn it one note at a time — the kalimba waits for you — or Play along to keep time with it.

  • Notes32, 6 pitches
  • RangeC4–A4
  • Key hereC major
  • Tempo108 bpm · about 18 s
  • LevelEasy

Can a kalimba play Frère Jacques?

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.

  • 7-note✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–A4 · load it
  • 8-key✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–A4 · load it
  • 10-key✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–A4 · load it
  • 17-key✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–A4 · loaded above
  • 21-key✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–A4 · load it

Frère Jacques: kalimba tabs

The large line is the number stamped on the tine; the small line under it is its letter name. 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

Frère Jacques — kalimba tabs (17-key) · 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.

  • 1C4×10
  • 2D4×2
  • 3E4×6
  • 4F4×4
  • 5G4×8
  • 6A4×2

What to expect on a kalimba

  • It runs from C4 to A4, a major sixth, using 6 different notes. Its lowest note is the lowest this instrument has, and 19 semitones of range are left above it.
  • 65% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a fifth, C4 to G4, at note 21.
  • The left thumb plays 8 notes and the right 14, with 10 on the centre tine. Once one thumb plays two different tines in a row — those are the spots to slow down for.
  • The furthest it reaches from the centre is the 3rd tine out.

About the tune

A French round first written down around 1780. It is sung in most European languages, and Gustav Mahler used a minor-key version of it as the funeral march in his First Symphony.

Traditional French round, published 1780. Public domain. The low G of “ding, dang, dong” is taken an octave up, where a 17-key has it. More about Frère Jacques →

Frère Jacques on other instruments

The same melody, in each instrument’s own notation. It is not offered for the guzheng, which does not have the notes.

More songs for the kalimba

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

Playing it on a real kalimba?

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

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