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SongsGod Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen
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Traditional English carol, the “London” tune, in print by the early 19th century. Public domain.

44 bars · written F3–C7, sounds F4–C8 · The orchestra’s xylophone: rosewood bars, a tube under each one, and every sharp in a raised back row.

Tap a bar, or drag across them for a glissando. On a keyboard the letters on the bars are the ones to press — they run up the bars from the lowest note.

XylophoneFree · printable · plays in your browser

God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen — Xylophone Letter Notes

God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen, written out for the xylophone as letter notes, phrase by phrase and set up above on the Concert · 3½ octaves. Press Play to hear it, Practice to learn it one note at a time — the xylophone waits for you — or Play along to keep time with it.

  • Notes67, 9 pitches
  • RangeG4–A5
  • Key hereA minor
  • Tempo138 bpm · about 33 s
  • LevelIntermediate

Can a xylophone play God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen?

1 of the 2 here do. 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.

  • Toy · 8 bars✕ Cannot play itNeeds G3, A3, B3, which it does not have
  • Concert · 3½ octaves✓ Plays as writtenIn A minor, G4–A5 · loaded above

God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen: xylophone letter notes

The large line is the note printed on the bar; 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.

▶ Play it above

God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen — xylophone letter notes (Concert · 3½ octaves) · tonalics.com

The 9 notes it uses

Lowest to highest, with how many times each is played. Learn these 9 and you can play the whole tune.

  • G5×2
  • A6×12
  • B7×8
  • C1×11
  • D2×12
  • E3×14
  • F4×4
  • G5×2
  • A6×2

What to expect on a xylophone

  • It runs from G4 to A5, an octave and a whole step, using 9 different notes. That leaves 14 semitones unused below and 15 above.
  • 86% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a fifth, A4 to E5, at note 3.
  • It uses only the front row — no sharps or flats in this key.

About the tune

One of the oldest English carols still sung, known from 18th-century broadsides and probably older. The tune used today is the one associated with London; Dickens has a caroller start it at Scrooge’s keyhole in A Christmas Carol.

Traditional English carol, the “London” tune, in print by the early 19th century. Public domain. The notes follow Paul Hardy’s Xmas Tunebook, 2019 (2024), cross-checked against 1 other transcription. More about God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen →

God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen on other instruments

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

More songs for the xylophone

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

Playing it on a real xylophone?

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

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