Beautiful Isle of Somewhere on the ocarina
On a 12-hole it starts A, G, F, C. Medium, 58 notes, in F major.
Beautiful Isle of Somewhere
Bar 1 of 16
What are the notes for Beautiful Isle of Somewhere?
On a 12-hole. Read left to right, a line at a time.
- AGFCFFErestB♭AGDEDCrest
- AGFCFEGrestGAGFEDCrest
- GCFCFFFFEFGAB♭rest
- AB♭AGGGTricky spot:high CFB♭restAGFCFAGFrest
Beautiful Isle of Somewhere is a slow song in 6/8 that opens on a falling line, A, G, F, dips to low C and comes back up to F. Here are its verse and refrain in F major, 16 bars from low C to high C with B flat its only note outside the C scale, so it plays on a 4-hole pendant as well as on a 6-hole or 12-hole.
What is the tricky spot in Beautiful Isle of Somewhere?
The second line of the refrain: A, B flat, A, G and two quick Gs, then a leap of a fourth up to high C, the only high C in the song, a drop of a fifth to F, and a lift to B flat, which the printing holds under a pause. On a 12-hole, Beautiful Isle of Somewhere goes from high C to F: you cover the left ring, left middle, left index and right index. On a 6-hole or 4-hole, you cover the left middle and left index.
Give high C a firm breath, then soften for the F below it: the drop is a fifth, so the F needs less air than the C. B flat is the one note outside the C scale and a cross-fingering on a 12-hole, so practise F to B flat slowly until the fingers land together. The verse opens on a long-short pair, A for three quarters of a beat and G for one quarter: make the G a quick lead-in to F, not an even pair, and give the low C that ends the verse its full length before the rest.
Where do you breathe in Beautiful Isle of Somewhere?
In the verse, at each rest: after the E that ends the first line, the low C that ends the second, the G that ends the third and the long low C at the end of the verse. In the refrain, after the B flat held under a pause at the end of each of its first two lines; the last line plays through to the final F.
Which ocarina can play Beautiful Isle of Somewhere?
Any 12-hole, 6-hole or 4-hole ocarina in C plays Beautiful Isle of Somewhere 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
| Note | Holes to cover | Picture |
|---|---|---|
| A | Cover the left pinky, left middle, left index, left thumb and right thumb | |
| G | Cover every main hole but the right index, right middle, right ring and right pinky | |
| F | Cover every main hole but the right middle, right ring and right pinky | |
| C | Cover every main hole | |
| E | Cover every main hole but the right ring and right pinky | |
| B♭ | Cover the left pinky, left index, right ring, left thumb and right thumb | |
| D | Cover every main hole but the right pinky | |
| high C | Cover the left pinky, left thumb and right thumb |
Drawn as you see it while playing: mouthpiece towards you, left hand on the left.
| Note | Holes to cover | Picture |
|---|---|---|
| A | Cover the left index, left thumb and right thumb | |
| G | Cover every hole but the left middle and right middle | |
| F | Cover every hole but the right middle and right index | |
| C | Cover every hole | |
| E | Cover every hole but the right index | |
| B♭ | Cover the right index, left thumb and right thumb | |
| D | Cover every hole but the right middle | |
| high C | Cover the left thumb and right thumb |
Drawn as you see it while playing: mouthpiece towards you, left hand on the left.
| Note | Holes to cover | Picture |
|---|---|---|
| A | Cover the left index | |
| G | Cover the left index and right index | |
| F | Cover the left middle and left index | |
| C | Cover every hole | |
| E | Cover every hole but the right index | |
| B♭ | Cover the right index | |
| D | Cover every hole but the right middle | |
| high C | All holes open |
Drawn as you see it while playing: mouthpiece towards you, left hand on the left.
Who wrote Beautiful Isle of Somewhere?
The music is by J. S. Fearis and the words by Jessie Brown Pounds, and the song was first published in 1897. Our tabs follow the 1901 sheet music from Forster Music in Chicago, pages 2 and 3, which carries the line "Copyright 1897 and 1901, by E. O. Excell". The archive's record of that copy dates Fearis 1867-1932 and Pounds 1861-1921 and quotes its cover: "As sung at the funeral of our martyred President William McKinley by the Euterpean Quartette." It prints the song in A-flat major for voice and piano: a verse, then a refrain, with two more verses sung to the same notes. We give the verse and refrain once, a minor third lower in F major for the ocarina, and show the melody only. Music: J. S. Fearis (1867-1932), the tune; words by Jessie Brown Pounds (1861-1921).