Piper's SongbookHow to play In the Hall of the Mountain King on recorder
In the Hall of the Mountain King (the main theme) uses 12 notes on the soprano recorder: A, G, high C, high D, F♯, low E, low D, high G, high C♯, G♯, B♭ and high F. The first line goes G A B♭ C′ D′ B♭ D′ C♯′ A C♯′ C′ G♯ C′ G A B♭ C′ D′ B♭ D′ G′ F′ D′ B♭ D′ F′.
- Notes
- 12: A, G, high C, high D, F♯, low E, low D, high G, high C♯, G♯, B♭, high F
- Level
- Cross fingerings
- Time
- 4/4, about 112 beats a minute
- Source
- Edvard Grieg, Peer Gynt, Op. 23, 1875
In the Hall of the Mountain King recorder notes with letters
Each box is one note, with its fingering underneath: filled holes are covered, a half-filled hole is half covered or pinched. Wider boxes are longer notes. A ′ mark means the higher octave, so D′ is high D. Bar lines are drawn as thin rules.
Line 1
Line 2
Line 3
Line 4
Letters only, for printing or copying
- G A B♭ C′ D′ B♭ D′ | C♯′ A C♯′ C′ G♯ C′ | G A B♭ C′ D′ B♭ D′ G′ | F′ D′ B♭ D′ F′ (rest)
- G A B♭ C′ D′ B♭ D′ | C♯′ A C♯′ C′ G♯ C′ | G A B♭ C′ D′ B♭ D′ G′ | F′ D′ B♭ D′ F′ (rest)
- D E F♯ G A F♯ A | B♭ F♯ B♭ A F♯ A | D E F♯ G A F♯ A | B♭ F♯ B♭ A (rest)
- D E F♯ G A F♯ A | B♭ F♯ B♭ A F♯ A | D E F♯ G A F♯ A | B♭ F♯ B♭ A (rest)
Sheet music
Written pitch for soprano recorder, which sounds an octave higher. Press play to hear it on a recorder sound; the slow setting plays at 60% speed.
Fingerings for the notes in In the Hall of the Mountain King
Hole 0 is the thumb hole on the back. Holes 1 to 3 are for the left hand, 4 to 7 for the right. These are Baroque (English) fingerings.
How to practise it
The second bar of the first two lines goes high C♯, A, high C♯, then high C, A♭, high C. High C♯ is thumb off with left index and middle fingers down. A♭ uses the G♯ fingering, with half of the right ring finger's double hole covered. Play every note short and detached.
Learn one line at a time. Play it slowly until every note is clean, then join it to the next line.
About the tune
Grieg wrote this in 1875 for Henrik Ibsen's play Peer Gynt. It plays as Peer enters the hall of the troll king of the Dovre mountains. The same short theme repeats over and over, getting faster and louder each time.
Questions
Is In the Hall of the Mountain King easy on recorder?
It is an intermediate piece. It uses cross fingerings or half holes, so learn those notes on their own first.
What notes do you need for In the Hall of the Mountain King on recorder?
A, G, high C, high D, F♯, low E, low D, high G, high C♯, G♯, B♭ and high F. Tap a note to see its fingering on its own page.
Do these fingerings work on a German recorder?
Mostly. F♯, B♭ and high F are fingered differently on a German recorder; the diagrams above are Baroque, and the linked note pages show both. A recorder whose hole 4 is smaller than hole 5 is Baroque.
More recorder songs
Notes checked against the Mutopia piano score, the cello and bass theme in the Wikipedia score excerpts and the theme excerpt in the Wikimedia Commons book of Romantic orchestral themes, transposed from B minor to G minor. Last checked 6 October 2026.