Greensleeves (What Child Is This) kalimba tabs

For a 17-key kalimba tuned to C major. This tab is the whole tune: 71 notes on 10 tines, from E4 up to G5.

Play along on the online kalimba Play it on a kalimba in G

newellabs.com/play/kalimba/tabs/greensleeves/

Number tab

The number tab read aloud, one sentence per group. “High” stands for one dot above the number and “very high” for two. 6. high 1, high 2, high 3, high 4, high 3. high 2, 7, 5, 6, 7. high 1, 6, 6, 5, 6. 7, 3, 6. high 1, high 2, high 3, high 4, high 3. high 2, 7, 5, 6, 7. high 1, 7, 6, 5, 4, 5. 6, 6. high 5, high 5, high 4, high 3. high 2, 7, 5, 6, 7. high 1, 6, 6, 5, 6. 7, 5, 3. high 5, high 5, high 4, high 3. high 2, 7, 5, 6, 7. high 1, 7, 6, 5, 4, 5. 6, 6.

Letter notes

A₄C₅D₅E₅F₅E₅D₅B₄G₄A₄B₄C₅A₄A₄G₄A₄B₄E₄A₄C₅D₅E₅F₅E₅D₅B₄G₄A₄B₄C₅B₄A₄G₄F₄G₄A₄A₄G₅G₅F₅E₅D₅B₄G₄A₄B₄C₅A₄A₄G₄A₄B₄G₄E₄G₅G₅F₅E₅D₅B₄G₄A₄B₄C₅B₄A₄G₄F₄G₄A₄A₄

Tines you need

The long tine in the middle is 1 (C4). Notes climb outward, alternating left and right, so neighbours on the same side are two steps apart.

How to read this tab

Numbers are steps of the scale. 1 is C, 2 is D, up to 7 for B. A dot above a number means one octave higher; two dots, two octaves higher. The song starts 6 1̇ 2̇ 3̇ 4̇ 3̇ 2̇ 7 (A4 C5 D5 E5 F5 E5 D5 B4).
Gaps mark bars. Each group is one bar of music. The tab shows which tine to play, not how long to hold it; press Listen on the play-along page to hear the rhythm.
Other kalimbas. On an 8-, 10- or 21-key kalimba in C the numbers mean the same notes, as long as the tines you need are there.

About the song

An English tune from the 16th century: a ballad called “Greensleeves” was registered in London in 1580. The Christmas carol “What Child Is This”, with words by William Chatterton Dix (1865), is sung to the same melody, so this tab works for both. The melody is in the public domain.

About this tab

What it covers. Whole tune, verse and refrain (the carol “What Child Is This” uses the same melody).
Key. A minor (printed in E minor).
Simplified. Ten notes are lowered a semitone: the tune uses G sharp (seven times) and F sharp (three times), and a kalimba in C has neither, so they are played as G and F.
Source. Transcribed from Mutopia Project “Greensleeves” (hymn tune, cyberhymnal transcription), soprano line.

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