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SongsAway in a Manger
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3 more songs need notes this instrument does not have. Changing the size or key brings some of them into reach.

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The tune “Mueller”, James R. Murray, 1887. Public domain.

16 strings · G3–A5 · C major · The common size, and what most lyre tabs assume. Two full octaves and a bit.

Tap a string, or sweep across them for a glissando. On a keyboard the letters on the strings are the ones to press — they follow the strings left to right.

LyreFree · printable · plays in your browser

Away in a Manger — Lyre Tabs

Away in a Manger, written out for the lyre as number tabs with the letter under every note and set up above on the 16-string. Press Play to hear it, Practice to learn it one note at a time — the lyre waits for you — or Play along to keep time with it.

  • Notes44, 8 pitches
  • RangeG4–G5
  • Key hereC major
  • Tempo100 bpm · about 29 s
  • LevelEasy

Can a lyre play Away in a Manger?

1 of the 3 here do. 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-string✕ Cannot play itNeeds G3, A3, B3, which it does not have
  • 10-string✕ Cannot play itNeeds G3, which it does not have
  • 16-string✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, G4–G5 · loaded above

Away in a Manger: lyre 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.

▶ Play it above

Away in a Manger — lyre tabs (16-string) · tonalics.com

The 8 notes it uses

Lowest to highest, with how many times each is played. Learn these 8 and you can play the whole tune.

  • 5str. 8×8
  • 6str. 9×5
  • 7str. 10×4
  • 1•str. 11×7
  • 2•str. 12×6
  • 3•str. 13×7
  • 4•str. 14×3
  • 5•str. 15×4

What to expect on a lyre

  • It runs from G4 to G5, an octave, using 8 different notes. That leaves 12 semitones unused below and 2 above.
  • 84% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a minor seventh, G4 to F5, at note 35.
  • It is played on strings 8 to 15 of 16, 8 strings in all.

About the tune

An American carol of the 1880s that was long, and wrongly, said to be by Martin Luther. This is the tune called “Mueller”, published by James R. Murray in 1887 and the one sung in North America. In Britain the same words go to a different melody, William J. Kirkpatrick’s “Cradle Song” of 1895.

The tune “Mueller”, James R. Murray, 1887. Public domain. The notes follow Wikipedia, “Away in a Manger” (engraved score), cross-checked against 1 other transcription. More about Away in a Manger →

Away in a Manger on other instruments

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

More songs for the lyre

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

Playing it on a real lyre?

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

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