TonalicsJOURNALOpen Tuner
‹ Violin songs
SongsRow, Row, Row Your Boat
Play a different song (36)
Play along
  1. 1
  2. 1
  3. 1
  4. 2
  5. 3
  6. 3
  7. 2
  8. 3
  9. 4
  10. 5
  11. 1'
  12. 1'
  13. 1'
  14. 5
  15. 5
  16. 5
  17. 3
  18. 3
  19. 3
  20. 1
  21. 1
  22. 1
  23. 5
  24. 4
  25. 3
  26. 2
  27. 1

Traditional, published 1852. Public domain.

4 strings · G3–E5 open · E6 at the octave · Perfect fifths all the way up. What every violin in the world is tuned to unless somebody has decided otherwise.

Tap a string, or slide along a string and the pitch follows your finger, under a bow that never stops. On a keyboard the letters on the strings are the ones to press — they run down the strings, 1 at the top — hold a key and the note holds.

ViolinFree · printable · plays in your browser

Row, Row, Row Your Boat — Violin Notes

Row, Row, Row Your Boat, written out for the violin as every note with its string and how far up it and set up above on the Standard. Press Play to hear it, Practice to learn it one note at a time — the violin waits for you — or Play along to keep time with it.

  • Notes27, 6 pitches
  • RangeC4–C5
  • Key hereC major
  • Tempo96 bpm · about 23 s
  • LevelEasy

Can a violin play Row, Row, Row Your Boat?

Yes — every one 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.

  • Standard✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–C5 · loaded above
  • AEAE✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–C5 · load it
  • ADAE✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–C5 · load it
  • GDGD✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–C5 · load it

Row, Row, Row Your Boat: violin notes

The large line is the note; the small line under it is the string, and how many semitones above its open note to stop it. 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

Row, Row, Row Your Boat — violin notes (Standard) · 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.

  • CG·5×7
  • DD·0×3
  • ED·2×7
  • FD·3×2
  • GD·5×5
  • CA·3×3

What to expect on a violin

  • It runs from C4 to C5, an octave, using 6 different notes. That leaves 5 semitones unused below and 16 above.
  • 81% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a fifth, C4 to G4, at note 23.
  • It is played on 3 strings (G, D and A), crossing between strings 6 times.
  • 3 notes are an open string, and the highest stop is 5 semitones above the open string — it never leaves the bottom of the neck.

About the tune

An American round, in print by 1852; the tune sung today appeared in 1881 and is usually credited to Eliphalet Oram Lyte. It is written to be sung in up to four parts, each voice entering a line after the one before.

Traditional, published 1852. Public domain. More about Row, Row, Row Your Boat →

Row, Row, Row Your Boat 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 violin

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

Playing it on a real violin?

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

🎙 Open the Violin Tuner