How to play Silent Night on the recorderStille Nacht, heilige Nacht

Silent Night recorder notes with letters, for beginners, with a fingering chart for each note.

Franz Xaver Gruber's carol, first sung in Austria in 1818. A slow, rocking three-beat song that reaches up to high F near the end. It uses 11 notes: low C, low D, low E, F, G, A, B, high C, high D, high E and high F. Below are the notes with their rhythm, and the fingering for each one.

Practice Silent Night with your recorder

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The notes

Tap a note to hear it.

GAGEGAGED'D'BC'C'GAAC'BAGAGEAAC'BAGAGED'D'F'D'BC'E'C'GEGFDC

Longer blocks are longer notes; a line marks each bar.

Sheet music

The same song in standard notation, with each note's name under it.

The notes as letters

G A G E G A G E D' D' B C' C' G A A C' B A G A G E A A C' B A G A G E D' D' F' D' B C' E' C' G E G F D C

C', D', E' and F' are the high C, high D, high E and high F. All for a soprano (descant) recorder, with baroque (English) fingering.

Fingerings

Fingering:

low C

Thumb hole covered, holes 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 covered

low D

Thumb hole covered, holes 1 2 3 4 5 6 covered

low E

Thumb hole covered, holes 1 2 3 4 5 covered

Thumb hole covered, holes 1 2 3 4 6 7 covered Thumb hole covered, holes 1 2 3 4 covered

Thumb hole covered, holes 1 2 3 covered

Thumb hole covered, holes 1 2 covered

Thumb hole covered, hole 1 covered

high C

Thumb hole covered, hole 2 covered

high D

Thumb hole open, hole 2 covered

high E

Thumb hole half covered (pinched), holes 1 2 3 4 5 covered

high F

Thumb hole half covered (pinched), holes 1 2 3 4 6 covered Thumb hole half covered (pinched), holes 1 2 3 4 covered

Tap Play to hear a note; tap a fingering card to see how to play it. Filled holes are covered. The left hand is on top (thumb behind, holes 1–3), the right hand below (holes 4–7).

Tips

Say "doo" into the recorder for each note: the tongue starts every note, so repeated notes sound separate.
Blow gently, like cooling soup. Too much air makes a squeak an octave up.
Cover the holes with the soft pads of your fingers, not the tips, so no air leaks out.
Low C needs the gentlest breath of all, and every hole sealed: if it squeaks, check your bottom fingers first.
F has two fingerings: on a baroque recorder it's forked (thumb and holes 1 to 4, 6 and 7, with hole 5 open); on a German recorder, just the thumb and holes 1 to 4.
High D has the thumb hole open and only hole 2 covered: just your left middle finger holds it.
Pinched thumb for high F, like high E: keep a small gap at the top of the thumb hole and blow steadily.
High E needs a "pinched" thumb: bend your left thumb so its nail half-covers the thumb hole, leaving a small gap at the top, with holes 1 to 5 covered as for low E.
For high C, lift your first finger (hole 1) and keep the thumb and hole 2 covered.

For teachers and parents

Print this song for your students: the notes, the fingering and a QR code. Scanning it opens the song in Recorder Hero, ready to practice at home.

Scan to practice Silent Night with Recorder Hero
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