Good King Wenceslas Kalimba Tabs (17-Key)

Good King Wenceslas kalimba tabs

For a 17-key kalimba tuned to C major. This tab is the whole tune: 53 notes on 8 tines, from G4 up to G5.

newellabs.com/play/kalimba/tabs/wenceslas/

Number tab

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

Letter notes

C₅C₅C₅D₅C₅C₅G₄A₄G₄A₄B₄C₅C₅C₅C₅C₅D₅C₅C₅G₄A₄G₄A₄B₄C₅C₅G₅F₅E₅D₅E₅D₅C₅A₄G₄A₄B₄C₅C₅G₄G₄A₄B₄C₅C₅D₅G₅F₅E₅D₅C₅F₅C₅

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 1̇ 1̇ 1̇ 2̇ 1̇ 1̇ 5 6 (C5 C5 C5 D5 C5 C5 G4 A4).
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

The tune is a spring carol, “Tempus adest floridum”, printed in the collection Piae Cantiones in 1582. John Mason Neale wrote the words in 1853. The melody is in the public domain.

About this tab

What it covers. Whole tune (one verse).
Key. C major (printed in A major).
Source. Transcribed from Mutopia Project “Good King Wenceslas”, soprano line; Mutopia’s source: Charles L. Hutchins, Carols Old and Carols New (Boston, 1916), No. 415.