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β€Ή Steel Drum songs
SongsSakura Sakura (さくらさくら)
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  28. 4

Japanese traditional, Edo period; first published in the 1880s. 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

Sakura Sakura β€” Steel Drum Letter Notes

Sakura Sakura (さくらさくら), 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.

  • Notes28, 4 pitches
  • RangeBβ™­4–F5
  • Key hereD minor
  • Tempo80 bpm Β· about 26 s
  • LevelIntermediate

Can a steel drum play Sakura Sakura?

βœ“ Plays as written Every note of it is on the steel drum, in D minor from Bβ™­4 to F5. The check is made note by note against what the instrument can actually sound.

Sakura Sakura: 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

Sakura Sakura (さくらさくら) β€” steel drum letter notes Β· tonalics.com

The 4 notes it uses

Lowest to highest, with how many times each is played. Learn these 4 and you can play the whole tune.

  • Bβ™­4Γ—2
  • D6Γ—14
  • E7Γ—10
  • F1Γ—2

What to expect on a steel drum

  • It runs from Bβ™­4 to F5, a fifth, using 4 different notes. That leaves 10 semitones unused below and 11 above.
  • 89% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a major third, D5 to Bβ™­4, at note 14.
  • Its notes sit in 2 of the pan’s three rings, so the stick moves in and out as well as around.

About the tune

A Japanese melody from the Edo period, known as a beginner’s piece for the koto before it was published in the 1880s in a collection for teaching that instrument. It is the tune most often used abroad to stand for Japan.

Japanese traditional, Edo period; first published in the 1880s. Public domain. More about Sakura Sakura β†’

Sakura Sakura on other instruments

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

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