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SongsCarol of the Bells (Shchedryk)
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Mykola Leontovych, “Shchedryk”, 1916. The melody is public domain; the later English lyric is not used here.

61 bars · C2–C7, 61 bars · The concert and solo marimba — the full five octaves, down to the low C a cello plays.

Tap a bar, or drag across them for a glissando. On a keyboard the letters on the bars are the ones to press — they run up the bars from middle C.

MarimbaFree · printable · plays in your browser

Carol of the Bells — Marimba Letter Notes

Carol of the Bells (Shchedryk) (the soprano line), written out for the marimba as letter notes, phrase by phrase and set up above on the 5 octaves. Press Play to hear it, Practice to learn it one note at a time — the marimba waits for you — or Play along to keep time with it.

  • Notes92, 11 pitches
  • RangeE4–A5
  • Key hereA minor
  • Tempo168 bpm · about 26 s
  • LevelIntermediate

Can a marimba play Carol of the Bells?

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.

  • 5 octaves✓ Plays as writtenIn A minor, E4–A5 · loaded above
  • 4.3 octaves✓ Plays as writtenIn A minor, E4–A5 · load it

Carol of the Bells: marimba letter notes

The large line is the note printed on the bar; 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

Carol of the Bells (Shchedryk) — marimba letter notes (5 octaves) · tonalics.com

The 11 notes it uses

Lowest to highest, with how many times each is played. Learn these 11 and you can play the whole tune.

  • E3×2
  • F♯♯4×2
  • G♯♯5×2
  • A6×16
  • B7×10
  • C1×25
  • D2×14
  • E3×16
  • F4×1
  • G5×1
  • A6×3

What to expect on a marimba

  • It runs from E4 to A5, an octave and a fourth, using 11 different notes. That leaves 28 semitones unused below and 15 above.
  • 69% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a major sixth, C5 to A5, at note 33.
  • It uses 2 back-row bars: F♯ and G♯.

About the tune

The Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych wrote “Shchedryk” for unaccompanied choir, built on a four-note folk chant sung at the New Year; it was first performed in Kyiv in 1916. A touring Ukrainian choir brought it to the United States in the early 1920s, where English words about bells were later written for it. Leontovych died in 1921 and his music is in the public domain; the English lyric is not, and is not used here.

Mykola Leontovych, “Shchedryk”, 1916. The melody is public domain; the later English lyric is not used here. The notes follow Wikipedia, “Shchedryk (song)” (engraved score). More about Carol of the Bells →

Carol of the Bells on other instruments

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

More songs for the marimba

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

Playing it on a real marimba?

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

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