Kalimba Beginner’s Songbook. 51 Simple Traditional Romantic Songs and Ballads: Play Kalimba by Number (Play Right Away: Super Easy Kalimba Sheet Music for Adult Beginners)

Most songbooks for beginners include a limited selection of songs, many of which are children’s tunes. In this book, we’ve focused on gathering songs specifically for adults. Some may be lesser-known, but each tells a rich story. These are folk love songs and ballads from Irish, Scottish, English, American, and Australian traditions. They evoke both joy and sorrow, capturing the full spectrum of human emotions. Though simplified for beginner musicians, all of these songs can be played even without knowledge of musical notation. There are 50 and 1 songs in the book. The musical notes have been simplified to an easy-to-play melody, avoiding arrangements and semitones, as the kalimba traditionally does not have keys tuned in semitones. No prior musical experience or ability to read sheet music is necessary to start playing right away. This sheet music is designed to be adaptable for any kalimba, whether you have a compact 8-note instrument or a larger 17-note version. Each circle on the sheet corresponds to a specific note number, matching each key on your kalimba. The duration of the notes is shown by the parentheses following the circles. The more parentheses after the circle, the longer the note’s duration. A whole note has three parentheses, while other notes have shorter durations and are indicated by two, one, or no parentheses. A dot after the note indicates an additional half-parenthesis duration. A dot above a note indicates a higher octave, as is common on kalimba keys. It’s important to note that the circles do not represent semitones, as kalimbas are typically not tuned in semitones. Every page includes QR codes that link to the appropriate song. While these examples might not feature our simplified melodies, they help in understanding the melodies and rhythm. Table of contents: Annie Laurie Au Clair de la Lune Aura Lee Beautiful Brown Eyes Bella Ciao Blood on the Saddle Bound for South Australia Brennan on the Moor Wedding March (Bridal Chorus) Bury Me Not on the Lone Prairie Butcher Boy Cliffs of Doneen Come Back Liza Cotton Eyed Joe Drink to Me Only With Thine Eyes Hi’ilawe House of the Rising Sun I Gave My Love a Cherry I Love You Isn’t It Grand, Boys? Italian Waltz James Connoly Lavender’s Blue Long, Long Ago Man of Constant Sorrow Molly Malone My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean My Home’s in Montana My Singing Bird My Wild Irish Rose Old Folks at Home The Red River Valley Scarborough Fair She Wore a Yellow Ribbon Skibbereen Spancil Hill Sweet Betsy from Pike The Banks of Claudy The Boys of Fairhill The Irish Rover The Kerry Recruit The Meeting of the Waters The Northern Lights of Aberdeen The Rocks of Bawn The Snowy-Breasted Pearl The Spanish Lady Under the Spreading Chestnut Tree Vive L’Amour Wanderin’ Weile Walia Wildwood Flower