Piper's SongbookHow to play O Come, All Ye Faithful on recorder
O Come, All Ye Faithful uses 8 notes on the soprano recorder: B, A, G, high C, high D, F♯, low E and low D. The first line goes G G D G A D B A B C′ B A G. The same tune is used for Adeste Fideles.
- Notes
- 8: B, A, G, high C, high D, F♯, low E, low D
- Level
- Both hands
- Time
- 4/4, about 96 beats a minute
- Source
- Latin hymn "Adeste Fideles", first printed by John Francis Wade, 1751
O Come, All Ye Faithful 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
Line 5
Letters only, for printing or copying
- G | G D G | A D | B A B C′ | B A G
- G F♯ E | F♯ G A B | F♯ E D | D
- D′ C′ B | C′ B | A B G A | F♯ D G
- G F♯ G A | G D B | B A B C′ | B A B
- C′ B A G | F♯ G C′ | B A G | G
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 O Come, All Ye Faithful
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 refrain repeats its call three times, climbing each time. The second call jumps from low D straight up to B: lift the whole right hand and the left ring and middle fingers in one movement. The third call goes one step higher, to C.
Learn one line at a time. Play it slowly until every note is clean, then join it to the next line.
About the tune
The Latin hymn "Adeste Fideles" first appears in collections copied and printed by John Francis Wade, an English Catholic who lived in France and worked as a music copyist. Frederick Oakeley's English translation of 1841 is the one that begins "O come, all ye faithful".
Questions
Is O Come, All Ye Faithful easy on recorder?
It is a good second or third tune. Both hands play, and the low notes need gentle air.
What notes do you need for O Come, All Ye Faithful on recorder?
B, A, G, high C, high D, F♯, low E and low D. Tap a note to see its fingering on its own page.
Do these fingerings work on a German recorder?
Mostly. F♯ is 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 Paul Hardy's Christmas tunebook against the hymnal melody printed on Wikipedia, in G. Hardy has F♯, E, D at the end of the third line; this page follows the hymnal's long F♯. Last checked 6 October 2026.