Christmas Ukulele: Silent Night (Tab)
December 15, 2008
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In the ukulele harmonics post I promised tab for a harmonics only version of Silent Night. I hope you’ve been practicing the stuff in that post, because here it is. And it’s tricky.
This version starts off fairly easy. The natural harmonics at the twelfth fret shouldn’t cause too many difficulties. It’s much more difficult to get clean harmonics at the fifth and seventh frets.
In bar 14 the artificial harmonics start. here you have to keep track of where both your left and right hands are. I find it easier to start the artificial harmonic technique at the beginning of bar 13 to avoid switching hands quickly.
The hardest note in the entire piece is the first note in bar 18. You have to fret the A string with your left hand and play a harmonic at the eighth fret (seven frets above the note you’re playing). It’s very difficult to get that one to sound cleanly.
Even though it’s tricky, I think it’s worth playing. The harmonics give it a Christmas bell feel to it.
If you want a non-harmonic, easy to play tab of Silent Night there’s one in my Christmas ukulele ebook.
Another Harmonic Tune
After my harmonic post Jimmy of the Bobby McGee’s suggested Popcorn as another tune that sounds great with harmonics. And he’s absolutely right.
I just wanted to say thanks for this tab.
A really inventive way to play this piece. I found it ‘easier’ (*Kaah!* yeah!) to play the harmonics with my right hand.
Stop the note gently with my RH index finger and pick the string with my thumb..left over guitar technique I reckon?!
Or mebbe I’m just weird!
Jules: No that’s one way to do it – I’m doing that with the artificial harmonics and a few other notes.