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SongsThe First Noel
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The melody on its own — the easy version.
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Traditional Cornish carol, first printed in 1823 and with this tune in 1833. Public domain.

61 keys · C2–C7, five octaves · The usual home keyboard — five octaves, enough for nearly everything written for two hands.

Tap a key, or slide along them for a glissando. On a keyboard the letters on the keys are the ones to press — Z to M are the white keys from middle C with S, D, G, H and J the black ones between them, and Q to P are the octave above; the arrow keys move both rows an octave, and Space is the sustain pedal.

PianoFree · printable · plays in your browser

The First Noel — Piano Letter Notes

The First Noel, written out for the piano as easy letter notes for the right hand, with do-re-mi under every note and set up above on the 61 keys. Press Play to hear it, Practice to learn it one note at a time — the piano waits for you — or Play along to keep time with it.

  • Notes72, 8 pitches
  • RangeC4–C5
  • Key hereC major
  • Tempo104 bpm · about 42 s
  • LevelIntermediate

Can a piano play The First Noel?

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.

  • 49 keys✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–C5 · load it
  • 61 keys✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–C5 · loaded above
  • 88 keys✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–C5 · load it

The First Noel: piano letter notes

The large line is the key’s letter; a dot over it is the octave above middle C’s, a dot under it the octave below; the small line under it is the same note in do-re-mi. 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

The First Noel — piano letter notes (61 keys) · tonalics.com

The First Noel letter notes as text

The same notes as plain text, one phrase to a line, to copy into a message or a document. A letter on its own is in the octave that starts on middle C (C4). A letter with a number is in that numbered octave: C5 is the C above middle C. A comma marks a long note.

E D C D E F G, A B C5 B A G, A B
C5 B A G A B C5 G F E, E D
C D E F G, A B C5 B A G, A B
C5 B A G A B C5 G F E, E D
C D E F G, C5 B A, A G
C5 B A G A B C5 G F E

The First Noel with both hands

The right hand plays the melody exactly as above. The left hand adds three chords underneath it, each held while the tune moves over it, and it plays them without moving: the hand stays in one place an octave below middle C and at most one finger shifts by a key between chords. RH is the right hand, LH the left, and a bar line separates the bars.

RH  E D | C D E F | G A B | C5 B A
LH  –   | C       | G7    | F

RH  G A B | C5 B A | G A B | C5 G F
LH  G7    | F      | G7    | C

RH  E E D | C D E F | G A B | C5 B A
LH  C     | C       | G7    | F

RH  G A B | C5 B A | G A B | C5 G F
LH  G7    | F      | G7    | C

RH  E E D | C D E F | G C5 B | A A
LH  C     | C       | C      | F

RH  G | C5 B A | G A B | C5 G F
LH  C | F      | G7    | C

RH  E
LH  C
  • CC3 – E3 – G3
  • G7B2 – F3 – G3
  • FC3 – F3 – A3
▶ Load both hands in the piano above

This left hand is an arrangement, not part of the tune: it is made by rule from the melody, giving each bar whichever of the three chords of the key holds most of its notes. Compared with the chord symbols printed in Paul Hardy’s Xmas Tunebook, 2019 (2024), it puts the same chord on 21 of the 24 bars and half bars the two share. A fuller arrangement would use more chords than three.

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.

  • CDo×3
  • DRe×6
  • EMi×9
  • FFa×6
  • GSol×12
  • ALa×14
  • BSi×13
  • C•Do×9

What to expect on a piano

  • It runs from C4 to C5, an octave, using 8 different notes. That leaves 24 semitones unused below and 24 above.
  • 93% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a fourth, C5 to G4, at note 23.
  • It is played on the white keys only.
  • It covers 8 white keys, more than the five a hand rests on, so the right hand has to move or stretch — by a key or two.

About the tune

A Cornish carol, first printed in 1823 and given with this tune in William Sandys’s collection of 1833. It is unusual among carols in that its verse and its refrain are nearly the same phrase, sung three times over — some scholars think the tune is a descant that outlived the melody it was written against.

Traditional Cornish carol, first printed in 1823 and with this tune in 1833. Public domain. The notes follow Paul Hardy’s Xmas Tunebook, 2019 (2024), cross-checked against 1 other transcription. More about The First Noel →

The First Noel 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 piano

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

Playing it on a real piano?

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

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