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Number tabs for the steel tongue drum
Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring
Free number tabs for Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring on the steel tongue drum. 45 notes, C Major scale, Intermediate level — play it instantly in the free Tongue Drum Online player.
The tab
6
65
53
35
56
6•1
87
76
67
7•1
87
75
57
7•1
8•3
0•2
9•1
8•2
9•1
87
75
57
7•1
86
67
76
64
46
67
75
56
65
53
35
56
6•1
85
53
35
56
6•1
87
76
65
51–7 scale note• above = higher octave• below = lower octaveabc = key in the app
▶ Play it in Tongue Drum Online
Open the free player on the C Major scale, then tap the petals or press these keyboard keys in order, following the tab above:
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Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring from Bach's cantata BWV 147 (1723) is one of classical music's most treasured melodies, its rolling triplet figure symbolising an unbroken spiritual journey. On a steel tongue drum the flowing, circular motion becomes deeply meditative, the warm overtones filling the space between notes with a choir-like resonance. Its continuous triplet stream gives intermediate players a satisfying test of rhythmic fluency.
How to play Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring on a tongue drum
The numbers above are the standard tongue-drum number notation. Each digit is a note of the C Major scale, counting up from the lowest tongue. A dot above a number raises it one octave; a dot below lowers it. The small teal letters show the matching key in the Tongue Drum Online player.
Start slowly, one phrase at a time. Let each note ring out fully before striking the next — the long decay is the whole character of the instrument. This is a intermediate arrangement and a simplified, single-instrument version of Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring.
About this melody
J.S. Bach, BWV 147, 1723 (public domain).