Silent Night Notes
Silent Night begins G A G E, G A G E: a gentle rocking figure, sung twice. The whole carol stays in C major, with no sharps or flats, and moves in a slow three beats to the measure.
Listen and play along
Hear the tune with a steady beat. Turn the tune off to play it yourself on any instrument, with the beat to keep you in time.
- G1½G, dotted quarter noteA½A, eighth noteGG, quarter note
- E3E, dotted half note
- G1½G, dotted quarter noteA½A, eighth noteGG, quarter note
- E3E, dotted half note
- D2D high, half noteDD high, quarter note
- B3B, dotted half note
- C2C high, half noteCC high, quarter note
- G3G, dotted half note
- A2A, half noteAA, quarter note
- C1½C high, dotted quarter noteB½B, eighth noteAA, quarter note
- G1½G, dotted quarter noteA½A, eighth noteGG, quarter note
- E3E, dotted half note
- A2A, half noteAA, quarter note
- C1½C high, dotted quarter noteB½B, eighth noteAA, quarter note
- G1½G, dotted quarter noteA½A, eighth noteGG, quarter note
- E3E, dotted half note
- D2D high, half noteDD high, quarter note
- F1½F high, dotted quarter noteD½D high, eighth noteBB, quarter note
- C3C high, dotted half note
- E3E high, dotted half note
- CC high, quarter noteGG, quarter noteEE, quarter note
- G1½G, dotted quarter noteF½F, eighth noteDD, quarter note
- C3C, dotted half note
23 measures of 3/4 · 46 notes
Name the notes in the game → Read the tune one note at a time; each right answer plays the note.
Change the notes in Compose → Move notes, change their lengths and hear your own version.
Each box is one measure of three beats. A wider note lasts longer. C' is the high C (a ' marks the octave above middle C).
The notes with the words
| Words | Notes |
|---|---|
| Silent night | G A G E |
| holy night | G A G E |
| All is calm | D' D' B |
| all is bright | C' C' G |
| Round yon virgin, mother and child | A A C' B A G A G E |
| Holy infant so tender and mild | A A C' B A G A G E |
| Sleep in heavenly peace | D' D' F' D' B C' |
| sleep in heavenly peace | E' C' G E G F D C |
A ’ after a letter means the note is in the octave above middle C’s: C’ is the C in the third space, D’ the D on the fourth line. Every other letter is in the octave starting at middle C.
The first four lines pair up. “Silent night” and “holy night” are the same four notes, G A G E. “All is calm” and “all is bright” both drop three notes from a high start: D’ D’ B, then C’ C’ G.
On the staff
Silent Night is in 3/4 time: three beats in every measure, with the first beat a little stronger. Count “1 2 3, 1 2 3” and the carol rocks like a lullaby, which is what it was written to be.
Free printable sheet music
The sheet has the melody one phrase per line, with the letter name under every note and the words under each line, on one page of US Letter or A4. It suits beginners on piano, keyboard or recorder, and is easy to hand out in a December music class. It’s free to print and copy.
The notes it uses
Silent Night covers more of the staff than most beginner songs. It starts in the middle, on G, climbs to the F on the top line for “Sleep in heavenly peace”, and ends on middle C on its ledger line.
Tips for reading it
- Feel the dotted rhythm. Each “Si-lent night” is a long note, a short one and a medium one: G (one and a half beats), A (half a beat), G (one beat). Then E is held for the whole measure.
- Use the repeats. Lines 1 and 2 are the same notes, and so are “Round yon virgin” and “Holy infant”. Read each once and you’ve read half the carol.
- Watch for the high notes. The last line jumps up to D’, F’ and E’. The top line of the staff is F; the space just below it is E.
About the carol
“Stille Nacht! Heilige Nacht!” was first sung on Christmas Eve 1818 in the church of St. Nicholas in Oberndorf, near Salzburg in Austria. Joseph Mohr, the assistant priest, had written the words two years earlier; the schoolteacher and organist Franz Xaver Gruber wrote the tune, and the two of them sang it with a guitar. The English words most people sing today are a translation by John Freeman Young, published in 1859. Both tune and words are long out of copyright.
Play it
Press Name the notes in the game at the top of this page to read Silent Night one note at a time in Trebly’s Songs mode. Each right answer plays the note, so the carol comes together as you read. For more carols, see Christmas songs with letter notes.