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β€Ή Steel Drum songs
SongsHot Cross Buns
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Traditional English street cry and nursery rhyme, 18th century. Public domain.

29 notes Β· C4–E6 Β· 29 notes in three rings Β· The lead pan of a steel band, in the fourths-and-fifths layout almost every tenor is built in today.

Tap a note, or drag across them to roll from note to note. On a keyboard the letters on the notes are the ones to press β€” they climb the pan a semitone at a time from the low C.

Steel DrumFree Β· printable Β· plays in your browser

Hot Cross Buns β€” Steel Drum Letter Notes

Hot Cross Buns, written out for the steel drum as letter notes, phrase by phrase. Press Play to hear it, Practice to learn it one note at a time β€” the steel drum waits for you β€” or Play along to keep time with it.

  • Notes17, 3 pitches
  • RangeF4–A4
  • Key hereF major
  • Tempo100 bpm Β· about 10 s
  • LevelEasy

Can a steel drum play Hot Cross Buns?

βœ“ Plays as written Every note of it is on the steel drum, in F major from F4 to A4. The check is made note by note against what the instrument can actually sound.

Hot Cross Buns: steel drum letter notes

The large line is the note stamped on the pan; 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.

β–Ά Play it above

Hot Cross Buns β€” steel drum letter notes Β· tonalics.com

The 3 notes it uses

Lowest to highest, with how many times each is played. Learn these 3 and you can play the whole tune.

  • F1Γ—7
  • G2Γ—7
  • A3Γ—3

What to expect on a steel drum

  • It runs from F4 to A4, a major third, using 3 different notes. That leaves 5 semitones unused below and 19 above.
  • 94% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a major third, F4 to A4, at note 4.
  • Every note is in one ring of the pan, so the stick never crosses between rings.

About the tune

Hot Cross Buns began as a street cry: the call of London bakers selling spiced buns on Good Friday. It was in print as a rhyme by the end of the 18th century, and the tune it settled on is about as small as a tune can be β€” three neighbouring notes, most of it a single falling step repeated.

Traditional English street cry and nursery rhyme, 18th century. Public domain. More about Hot Cross Buns β†’

Hot Cross Buns on other instruments

The same melody, in each instrument’s own notation.

More songs for the steel drum

All 36 steel drum songs Β· Christmas songs for steel drum Β· The online steel drum on its own

Playing it on a real steel drum?

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

πŸŽ™ Open the Handpan Tuner