Go Tell It on the Mountain kalimba tabs

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 3̇ 5̇ 5̇ 6̇ 5̇ 3̇ 1̇ 2̇ (E5 G5 G5 A5 G5 E5 C5 D5).
• 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 African-American spiritual, first printed in the early 1900s in a collection of spirituals. The melody is in the public domain.

About this tab

• What it covers. Verse (“When I was a seeker”) and the “Go tell it on the mountain” chorus, in the early form printed in 1909 and 1925, which differs in places from the later hymn-book tune. The high note that ends the verse (the second note of bar 8) is a slide in the print and can be left out.
• Key. C major (printed in F major).
• Source. Transcribed from Saint Helena Island Spirituals, recorded and transcribed by Nicholas G. J. Ballanta-(Taylor) (G. Schirmer for the Penn Normal, Industrial and Agricultural School, 1925), No. 110, “Go tell it on de Mountain”, p. 90.