- Rangeoctave
- Notes44, 8 different
- ScaleMajor, no accidentals
- Time3/4
- Length hereabout 29 s
- Source editionF major
About Away in a Manger
An American carol of the 1880s that was long, and wrongly, said to be by Martin Luther. This is the tune called “Mueller”, published by James R. Murray in 1887 and the one sung in North America. In Britain the same words go to a different melody, William J. Kirkpatrick’s “Cradle Song” of 1895.
It is a gentle waltz that begins on its highest note and works downward, spanning one octave.
Play Away in a Manger on your instrument
24 of the 27 playable instruments here have every note it needs. 24 play it where the library writes it; the rest move it to another key or octave, and each page says which. Every page has the instrument itself, with the song loaded, above the notes.
- Kalimba tabs
- Piano letter notes
- Mbira tabs
- Oud notes
- Violin notes
- Cello notes
- Erhu notes
- Dulcimer tab
- Xylophone letter notes
- Marimba letter notes
- Glockenspiel letter notes
- Steel Drum letter notes
- Harmonica tabs
- Trumpet notes
- Clarinet notes
- Saxophone notes
- Flute notes
- Recorder notes
- Tuba notes
- Euphonium notes
- Trombone notes
- Accordion letter notes
- Harp letter notes
- Lyre tabs
Instruments that cannot play it
- Guzheng — it would need C♯5, G5, which it does not have in any size or key here.
- Handpan — it would need G3, B3, which it does not have in any size or key here.
- Ocarina — it would need G5, which it does not have in any size or key here.
Away in a Manger letter notes
Written in C major, from G4 to G5, with each note’s number in the scale under it — the form that transfers to any instrument. A dash holds a note another beat, an underline is half a beat, and each line is one phrase.
Away in a Manger — letter notes · tonalics.com
Where these notes come from
The tune “Mueller”, James R. Murray, 1887. Public domain.
The melody was not written down from memory. It is derived from a published transcription and compared, note for note, with independent ones:
- Followed: Wikipedia, “Away in a Manger” (engraved score)
- Checked against: Sudbury Ancient Fyfe & Drum Companie carol book, transcribed by John Chambers — 2 of 46 notes differ, as variants of a traditional tune do
The “Mueller” tune (James R. Murray, 1887), the one sung in North America. Kirkpatrick’s 1895 “Cradle Song”, the usual British tune, is a different melody.