Piper's SongbookHow to play Spring on recorder
Spring (from The Four Seasons) uses 8 notes on the soprano recorder: B, A, G, high C, high D, F♯, low D and high E. The first line goes G B B B A G D′ D′ C′ B B B A G D′ D′ C′ B C′ D′ C′ B A F♯ D. The same tune is used for La primavera.
- Notes
- 8: B, A, G, high C, high D, F♯, low D, high E
- Level
- Thumb pinch
- Time
- 4/4, about 96 beats a minute
- Source
- Antonio Vivaldi, The Four Seasons, Op. 8 No. 1, first movement; published 1725
Spring 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
Letters only, for printing or copying
- G | B B B A G D′ D′ C′ | B B B A G D′ D′ C′ | B C′ D′ C′ B A F♯ D
- G | B B B A G D′ D′ C′ | B B B A G D′ D′ C′ | B C′ D′ C′ B A (rest)
- G | D′ C′ B C′ D′ E′ D′ G | D′ C′ B C′ D′ E′ D′ G | E′ D′ C′ B A G A | 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 Spring
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 third bar of the first line runs down from high D through F♯ to low D. Put your right hand down one finger at a time as you go, and soften the air for low D. Line two repeats the opening as a quiet echo.
Learn one line at a time. Play it slowly until every note is clean, then join it to the next line.
About the tune
Spring is the first of Vivaldi's Four Seasons concertos, published in Amsterdam in 1725. Vivaldi printed a sonnet with each concerto, and this opening tune goes with the line saying that spring has arrived.
Questions
Is Spring easy on recorder?
It suits a player who already knows the notes from low D to high D. It also needs the thumb pinch for the high notes.
What notes do you need for Spring on recorder?
B, A, G, high C, high D, F♯, low D and high E. 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 the solo violin part in the Mutopia score and Frank Nordberg's ABC, transposed from E to G. Last checked 6 October 2026.