Sur le pont d'Avignon on the ocarina
On a 12-hole it starts F, F, F, G. Medium, 66 notes, in F major.
Sur le pont d'Avignon
Bar 1 of 20
What are the notes for Sur le pont d'Avignon?
On a 12-hole. Read left to right, a line at a time.
- FFFGGGTricky spot:AB♭high CFEFGC
- FFFGGGAB♭high CFGEFrest
- FFFFGFrestFFFFGFrest
- FFFGGGAB♭high CFEFGC
- FFFGGGAB♭high CFGEFrest
Sur le pont d'Avignon is a French round dance for children: a quick refrain that starts on three F's and three G's, a short middle part, and the refrain again. Here it is in F major, from C up to high C, with one B flat.
What is the tricky spot in Sur le pont d'Avignon?
The third bar, where the tune runs up A, B flat, high C and drops a fifth straight back to F. On a 12-hole, Sur le pont d'Avignon 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.
Play the A long and the B flat short, a dotted pair, then two even half beats: high C, F. The fourth bar does the same from E up to G and down to low C. Practise those two bars slowly until the fingers land the drop cleanly, then bring them up to speed. Weckerlin's 1870 printing starts the refrain on the beat, with the three F's as eighth, eighth, quarter; he notes that French editions usually printed it with the first two notes as an upbeat, which puts the strong beats in the wrong place.
Where do you breathe in Sur le pont d'Avignon?
In the half-beat rests: at the end of the refrain in bar 8, and after each of the two short phrases of the middle part, in bars 10 and 12. If the refrain is too long for one breath, take a quick one after the low C at the end of bar 4, and again at the end of bar 16 when the refrain comes back.
Which ocarina can play Sur le pont d'Avignon?
Any 12-hole, 6-hole or 4-hole ocarina in C plays Sur le pont d'Avignon 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 7 notes here, on a 12-holeHoles in words, with a picture
| Note | Holes to cover | Picture |
|---|---|---|
| F | Cover every main hole but the right middle, right ring and right pinky | |
| G | Cover every main hole but the right index, right middle, right ring and right pinky | |
| A | Cover the left pinky, left middle, left index, left thumb and right thumb | |
| B♭ | Cover the left pinky, left index, right ring, left thumb and right thumb | |
| high C | Cover the left pinky, left thumb and right thumb | |
| E | Cover every main hole but the right ring and right pinky | |
| C | Cover every main hole |
Drawn as you see it while playing: mouthpiece towards you, left hand on the left.
| Note | Holes to cover | Picture |
|---|---|---|
| F | Cover every hole but the right middle and right index | |
| G | Cover every hole but the left middle and right middle | |
| A | Cover the left index, left thumb and right thumb | |
| B♭ | Cover the right index, left thumb and right thumb | |
| high C | Cover the left thumb and right thumb | |
| E | Cover every hole but the right index | |
| C | Cover every hole |
Drawn as you see it while playing: mouthpiece towards you, left hand on the left.
| Note | Holes to cover | Picture |
|---|---|---|
| F | Cover the left middle and left index | |
| G | Cover the left index and right index | |
| A | Cover the left index | |
| B♭ | Cover the right index | |
| high C | All holes open | |
| E | Cover every hole but the right index | |
| C | Cover every hole |
Drawn as you see it while playing: mouthpiece towards you, left hand on the left.
Where do our Sur le pont d'Avignon tabs come from?
Nobody knows who wrote the song; it became popular in 1853, when Adolphe Adam used it in his opéra comique Le Sourd ou l'Auberge pleine. Our tabs follow Jean-Baptiste Weckerlin's printing of 1870, moved from G major to F major. Music: traditional French children's song.