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Away in a Manger on the ocarina

On a 12-hole it starts high C, high C, B♭, A. Medium, 44 notes, in F major.

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Away in a Manger

Bar 1 of 16

high C
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What are the notes for Away in a Manger?

On a 12-hole. Read left to right, a line at a time.

  1. high C high CB♭A
    AGF
    FED
    CC
  2. CDC
    CGE
    DCF
    Ahigh C
  3. high CB♭A
    AGF
    FED
    Tricky spot:CC
  4. B♭AG
    AGF
    GDE
    F

Away in a Manger is a slow lullaby in 3/4 that starts high and drifts down: high C, C, B♭, A, then A, G, F, all the way to low C. This is the tune most Americans sing, known as "Mueller". In F major it runs from C to high C with B♭ as its one flat, so a 12-hole, a 6-hole or a 4-hole ocarina in C can play it.

Away in a Manger ocarina tabs for a 12-hole ocarina: the fingering for each note, then the letter notes bar by bar
Away in a Manger as one picture, with the tabs for a 12-hole, to save to your phone. Open the picture

What is the tricky spot in Away in a Manger?

The start of the last line, where the tune jumps from a held low C up to B♭, the widest leap in the carol. On a 12-hole, Away in a Manger goes from C to B♭: you lift the left ring, left middle, right index, right middle and right pinky. On a 6-hole or 4-hole, you lift the left middle, right middle and left index.

Low C to B♭ is almost an octave. Practise it slowly: low C, then B♭, then B♭, A, G, until the B♭ arrives in tune without a squeak. B♭ is a cross-fingering on a 12-hole, so learn it on its own first. Give the low C a soft, slow breath and the B♭ a slightly firmer one (more on breath). The rest is a gentle rhythm: each line opens with a long note and a short one, a beat and a half then half a beat, so let the long note lean and keep the short one light, as if rocking a cradle.

Where do you breathe in Away in a Manger?

Each line ends on a long low C or on A, held for two beats, before a single note that leads into the next line. Breathe at the end of that long note, letting it go a moment early. The whole carol is only four lines, so a calm breath at each one is plenty.

Which ocarina can play Away in a Manger?

Any 12-hole, 6-hole or 4-hole ocarina in C plays Away in a Manger in this key. On an ocarina in G or F, use the same fingerings: the tune sounds in a different key, which is fine when you play alone. Each linked chart has every fingering for its ocarina, and you can check your notes with a tuner such as our free ocarina tuner.

The 8 notes here, on a 12-holeHoles in words, with a picture
NoteHoles to coverPicture
high CCover the left pinky, left thumb and right thumb
B♭Cover the left pinky, left index, right ring, left thumb and right thumb
ACover the left pinky, left middle, left index, left thumb and right thumb
GCover every main hole but the right index, right middle, right ring and right pinky
FCover every main hole but the right middle, right ring and right pinky
ECover every main hole but the right ring and right pinky
DCover every main hole but the right pinky
CCover every main hole

Drawn as you see it while playing: mouthpiece towards you, left hand on the left.

Did Martin Luther write Away in a Manger?

No, though many old hymn books say so. The carol is now thought to be wholly American, and the tune we teach was first printed by James Ramsey Murray in 1887, in a songbook for children. Our tabs follow that first printing, which calls it "Luther's Cradle Hymn", claims Luther wrote it for his children, and signs the music only with Murray's initials. Later books then credited the tune to a "Carl Mueller" whom no one has identified, and "Mueller" is still its name. Britain, Ireland and Canada sing another tune, William J. Kirkpatrick's Cradle Song. Murray died in 1905. We show the melody only. Music: the tune known as "Mueller", by James Ramsey Murray (1841-1905), first printed in 1887; words anonymous.

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