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SongsJolly Old Saint Nicholas
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American, 19th century; the music was first published in 1874. Public domain.

29 notes · C4–E6 · 29 notes in three rings · 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 — they climb the pan a semitone at a time from the low C.

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Jolly Old Saint Nicholas — Steel Drum Letter Notes

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas, 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 — the steel drum waits for you — or Play along to keep time with it.

  • Notes48, 6 pitches
  • RangeC5–A5
  • Key hereF major
  • Tempo100 bpm · about 19 s
  • LevelEasy

Can a steel drum play Jolly Old Saint Nicholas?

✓ Plays as written Every note of it is on the steel drum, in F major from C5 to A5. The check is made note by note against what the instrument can actually sound.

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas: 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.

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Jolly Old Saint Nicholas — steel drum letter notes · 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.

  • C5×4
  • D6×8
  • E7×1
  • F1×13
  • G2×10
  • A3×12

What to expect on a steel drum

  • It runs from C5 to A5, a major sixth, using 6 different notes. That leaves 12 semitones unused below and 7 above.
  • 85% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a fifth, A5 to D5, at note 13.
  • Every note is in one ring of the pan, so the stick never crosses between rings.

About the tune

An American children’s song whose words appeared as a poem in the 1860s. The music was first published in 1874 and is generally attributed to James R. Murray, the composer of the “Mueller” tune for Away in a Manger.

American, 19th century; the music was first published in 1874. Public domain. The notes follow Douglas D. Anderson, The Hymns and Carols of Christmas (sequence released to the public domain), cross-checked against 2 other transcriptions. More about Jolly Old Saint Nicholas →

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas 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 steel drum

All 36 steel drum songs · Christmas songs for steel drum · 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.

🎙 Open the Handpan Tuner