Potato Flute › Songs › Happy Birthday
A little challenge · 8 notes
How to play Happy Birthday on the ocarina
Happy Birthday ocarina notes with color coding & letters, sheet music, fingering diagrams, and interactive audio practice.
The universal celebration song. Spans from low D up to high D, putting all your fingerings to work. It uses 8 notes: D, E, F#, G, A, B, C′, D′.
The notes & rhythm
DDEDGF#DDEDAGDDD′BGF#EC′C′BGAG
Longer blocks are longer notes; a vertical line marks each bar.
Sheet music
Standard treble clef notation with letter guides below each note.
The notes as letters
D D E D G F# D D E D A G D D D′ B G F# E C′ C′ B G A G
Ocarina fingerings
Select your ocarina type to see the right fingerings. Filled holes are covered; white holes are open.
E · low E
F# · F#
G · G
A · A
B · B
C′ · high C
D′ · high D
Playing tips for Happy Birthday
- Start each note cleanly with a gentle tongue stroke (whisper "too" or "doo").
- Seal every hole completely with the soft pads of your fingers, not your fingertips.
- The ocarina's pitch follows your breath: blowing softer lowers the pitch, blowing harder raises it.
- Low notes (C, D, E) need the gentlest breath of all. If a low note warbles or squeaks, soften your breath and check that your lower fingers fully seal their holes.
- F# requires lifting your left pointer while covering the surrounding holes. Check that adjacent holes stay firmly sealed.
▶ Play Happy Birthday in Potato Flute
More songs to learn
- Hot Cross Buns3 notes · First songs
- Au Clair de la Lune3 notes · First songs
- Mary Had a Little Lamb4 notes · Easy
- Lightly Row5 notes · Easy
- Ode to Joy5 notes · Easy
- Jingle Bells5 notes · Easy
- When the Saints Go Marching In5 notes · Easy
- Old MacDonald Had a Farm5 notes · Easy
- Amazing Grace6 notes · A little challenge
- Brahms' Lullaby7 notes · A little challenge
- All My Little Ducklings (Alle meine Entchen)6 notes · A little challenge
- Morning Mood (Peer Gynt)5 notes · Easy
- Twinkle Twinkle Little Star6 notes · A little challenge
- London Bridge6 notes · A little challenge
- Row, Row, Row Your Boat6 notes · A little challenge
- Yankee Doodle7 notes · A little challenge
- Go Tell Aunt Rhody5 notes · Easy
- Frère Jacques7 notes · A little challenge
- Silent Night11 notes · A little challenge
- Joy to the World8 notes · A little challenge