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Number tabs for the steel tongue drum
Wade in the Water
Free number tabs for Wade in the Water on the steel tongue drum. 28 notes, C Major scale, Easy level — play it instantly in the free Tongue Drum Online player.
The tab
5
53
35
56
65
53
33
35
53
35
56
67
76
65
56
65
53
32
23
32
23
35
56
65
53
32
23
31–7 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:
35672
Wade in the Water is a traditional African-American spiritual believed to contain coded guidance for freedom-seekers following the Underground Railroad. On a steel tongue drum the minor-tinged melody takes on a mysterious, hypnotic quality, the sustained notes hanging in the air like ripples spreading across still water. Its steady rhythmic pulse and expressive intervals give players a meaningful and emotionally rich melody to explore.
How to play Wade in the Water 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 easy arrangement and a simplified, single-instrument version of Wade in the Water.
About this melody
African American spiritual, traditional.