Somewhere Over the Rainbow Kalimba Tab — Letter Notes & Numbered Tabs
The full Somewhere Over the Rainbow arrangement for a 17-key kalimba in C major, written out in both letter notes and numbered notation — with an honest difficulty note and practice tips for the parts that need them.
Difficulty
Intermediate
Key
C Major (17-key)
Range
C4 – G5
Tempo
80 BPM
Few melodies climb the way Somewhere Over the Rainbow does. Harold Arlen wrote it with lyricist E.Y. Harburg for The Wizard of Oz in 1939, and Judy Garland's opening line has been pulling listeners upward ever since. Fifty years later, Israel Kamakawiwoʻole's gentle ukulele recording gave the song a second life — and made it a favorite of everyone who loves soft, plucked instruments, kalimba players very much included.
This arrangement keeps the song's famous rising phrases and fits them on a standard 17-key kalimba in C major, between the lowest tine C4 and G5. It follows the relaxed feel of the IZ recording most people know: unhurried, swaying, and built almost entirely from small repeated-note pairs.
Below you will find the complete tab in letter notes and numbered notation, a difficulty guide, and tips for the phrases that need the most care. Learn the opening two bars and you already have the shape of the entire song.
Hear Somewhere Over the Rainbow first
Israel Kamakawiwoʻole's beloved recording. This is the relaxed, swaying feel our arrangement borrows — notice how softly each note is placed.
Video: Somewhere Over the Rainbow — Israel Kamakawiwoʻole (YouTube). Want to test the fingerings as you listen? Open our virtual kalimba in a second tab and pluck along with the recording.
Somewhere Over the Rainbow Kalimba Tabs — Letter Notes
How to read the letter tabs: each note shows the letter and the octave, like C4 or G5. On a 17-key kalimba in C, the lowest tine is C4 and the highest is E6, so the octave number tells you which side of the instrument to play on — smaller numbers are the longer, lower tines. A dash after a note (C4 -) means let it ring.
| C5 C5 E5 E5 G5 E5 C5 G4 | A4 C5 A4 G4 E4 E4 G4 A4 | | C5 G4 A4 C5 E5 C5 A4 | G4 E4 C4 E4 A4 C5 E5 | | C5 E5 G5 E5 C5 A4 G4 E4 | G4 A4 C5 A4 G4 E4 E4 G4 | | A4 C5 C5 E5 C5 A4 G4 | E4 E4 C4 |
Somewhere Over the Rainbow Kalimba Tabs — Numbered Notation
How to read the numbered tabs: numbers 1–7 are the scale notes (1 = C, 2 = D, and so on). 1° is the low octave tine, plain 1 is the middle one, and 1′ is the high one — the same markings you see next to the numbers on your kalimba. Notes in parentheses ( ) play together, and a dash after a number means let it ring.
| 1 1 3 3 5 3 1 5° | 6° 1 6° 5° 3° 3° 5° 6° | | 1 5° 6° 1 3 1 6° | 5° 3° 1° 3° 6° 1 3 | | 1 3 5 3 1 6° 5° 3° | 5° 6° 1 6° 5° 3° 3° 5° | | 6° 1 1 3 1 6° 5° | 3° 3° 1° |
Prefer to hear it first? Open Somewhere Over the Rainbow in the interactive player and follow along while it plays. For more songs in the same style, browse the free kalimba tabs hub.
How hard is Somewhere Over the Rainbow on kalimba?
We rate this arrangement Intermediate. We rate this arrangement Intermediate. It is slow — a gentle 80 BPM — but the melody keeps making small climbs: C5 up to E5, E5 up to G5, then long glides back down toward the low tines. None of the jumps is wide. The real work is keeping the repeated pairs even while your thumb travels, and that is a skill worth building anyway.
Learning path: phrase by phrase
Work through these phrases in order. Each one is short enough to master in a few minutes, and together they cover the whole song.
“Somewhere over the rainbow”
C5 C5 E5 E5 G5 E5 C5 G4. The famous climb: repeated notes rising toward G5, then the first long glide back down. This exact shape returns again and again.
“Way up high”
A4 C5 A4 G4 E4. A gentle wave that rises, leans on C5, and settles low. Keep it slow; this phrase is the song taking a breath.
The closing drift
The last phrases sink step by step until only E4 and the low C4 are left. Let the final note fade completely — the song should end like a sigh, not a stop.
Playing tips
- The song opens C5 C5 E5 E5 G5 — two pairs of repeated notes stepping upward. Make each pair match: the second note exactly as soft and exactly as long as the first. Those even pairs are the whole personality of the piece.
- Every rise has a matching descent. After the melody touches G5 it walks back down through E5, C5 and G4 toward the low tines. Practice the downhills on their own; they are where rushing sneaks in.
- The low C4 anchors the arrangement's calmest moments. Move toward it early rather than at the last instant, and keep it gentle — low tines ring longer and louder than you expect.
- Play it softer than feels natural. The recording everyone loves is quiet and swaying. Record yourself once; if your playing sounds busy, halve the volume of every pluck and try again.
Somewhere Over the Rainbow kalimba FAQ
Is this the Judy Garland version or the IZ version?
The melody follows the original song, played at the relaxed tempo of the famous Israel Kamakawiwoʻole recording. It is transposed to C major to match a standard 17-key kalimba, so the letter names differ from the 1939 key — but the tune is the one you know.
Can a beginner learn it?
Yes, with patience. The notes are all within reach and the tempo is slow; the difficulty comes from the constant small climbs. Learn the first four bars, then add two at a time, and only connect sections once each sounds clean on its own.
Why do my repeated notes sound uneven?
Usually one thumb is doing all the work. Share the pairs between left and right thumbs, and keep your hand loose. Uneven repeated notes are almost always a tension problem, not a timing problem.
What should I learn next?
Can't Help Falling in Love is the ideal companion — another slow, beloved melody with wide singing phrases, and the song most often requested after this one. Once you know both, you can play an entire evening of gentle classics.
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Related tabs & guides
- Amazing Grace kalimba tabs — the other slow classic with wide, singing phrases; it pairs beautifully with this song at gatherings.
- 7 note kalimba songs — melodies that fit on small kalimbas, if you are playing on fewer than 17 tines.
- Kalimba tabs with numbers — more practice reading the numbered notation used in the tab above.
- 17-key kalimba tabs — arrangements written for the standard layout, including the high and low tines.