How to Play Old MacDonald Had a Farm on the Tin Whistle

G major · 4/4 · 120 BPM · Song · Beginner

Old MacDonald Had a Farm is a song you can learn on the tin whistle, set in G major (4/4, around 120 beats per minute). It uses 5 distinct notes, ranging from D5 up to B5 — all within the D whistle’s range.

G-major children's song; first octave (D5 to B5), repeated-note phrases.

The tin whistle notes for Old MacDonald Had a Farm start G G G D E E D B B A A G Full sequence below.

The interactive sheet music shows a fingering chart under every note. Press Play this tune to play along while the app listens to your microphone and grades every note, or print a clean copy of the score.

Tin whistle notes

On a D tin whistle, play Old MacDonald Had a Farm with these notes in order. Same letter in a higher octave uses the same fingering — overblow for the second register.

G G G D E E D B B A A G G G G D E E D B B A A G D D G G G D D G G G G G G G G G G D G G G D E E D B B A A G

Sheet music

ABC notation

X:1
T:Old MacDonald Had a Farm
M:4/4
L:1/4
K:G
G G G D | E E D2 | B B A A | G4 |
G G G D | E E D2 | B B A A | G4 |
D D G G | G D D G | G/G/ G/G/ G/G/ G/G/ | G2 D2 |
G G G D | E E D2 | B B A A | G4 |]

Fingering chart

Old MacDonald Had a Farm uses these notes on the D tin whistle: D5, E5, G5, A5, B5.

D5
E5
G5
A5
B5

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