About A Tisket, A Tasket
A Tisket, A Tasket is a nursery rhyme in D major — beginner-friendly, running from D to B and staying in first position on banjo, mandolin and fiddle.
- Type
- Nursery rhyme, each usually played twice
- Key
- D major · 4/4
- Range
- D to B · first position
- Notes used
- D E F♯ G A B
- Level
- Beginner-friendly
A Tisket, A Tasket — sheet music
D major · 4/4
The notes
Letter names, bar by bar · capitals up to C in the third space, lower case from the D on the 4th line
A | A F♯ B | A F♯ G | A A F♯ B A F♯ F♯ | G G E E | G G E E | E G F♯ E F♯ D A | F♯ D
A Tisket, A Tasket — tab
Tenor banjo · mandolin · fiddle · guitar · ukulele — tap one to open it
A Tisket, A Tasket — Tenor banjo tab
G D A E (Irish tuning) · open position
E|---|-------|-------|---------| A|-0-|-0---2-|-0-----|-0-0---2-| D|---|---4---|---4-5-|-----4---| G|---|-------|-------|---------|
E|-------|---------|---------|---------| A|-0-----|---------|---------|---------| D|---4-4-|-5-5-2-2-|-5-5-2-2-|-2-5-4-2-| G|-------|---------|---------|---------|
E|-------|-----| A|-----0-|-----| D|-4-0---|-4-0-| G|-------|-----|
Numbers are frets. Tenor banjo sounds an octave below the written notes.
A Tisket, A Tasket — Mandolin tab
G D A E · open position
E|---|-------|-------|---------| A|-0-|-0---2-|-0-----|-0-0---2-| D|---|---4---|---4-5-|-----4---| G|---|-------|-------|---------|
E|-------|---------|---------|---------| A|-0-----|---------|---------|---------| D|---4-4-|-5-5-2-2-|-5-5-2-2-|-2-5-4-2-| G|-------|---------|---------|---------|
E|-------|-----| A|-----0-|-----| D|-4-0---|-4-0-| G|-------|-----|
Numbers are frets. Same strings as the fiddle, so the same notes fall in the same places.
A Tisket, A Tasket — fiddle fingering
G D A E · first position — finger numbers
E|---|-------|-------|---------| A|-0-|-0---1-|-0-----|-0-0---1-| D|---|---2---|---2-3-|-----2---| G|---|-------|-------|---------|
E|-------|---------|---------|---------| A|-0-----|---------|---------|---------| D|---2-2-|-3-3-1-1-|-3-3-1-1-|-1-3-2-1-| G|-------|---------|---------|---------|
E|-------|-----| A|-----0-|-----| D|-2-0---|-2-0-| G|-------|-----|
0 = open string · 1–4 = finger · L = low (half step back), H = high.
A Tisket, A Tasket — Guitar tab
E A D G B E · open position
e|---|-------|-------|---------| B|---|-----0-|-------|-------0-| G|-2-|-2-----|-2---0-|-2-2-----| D|---|---4---|---4---|-----4---| A|---|-------|-------|---------| E|---|-------|-------|---------|
e|-------|---------|---------|---------| B|-------|---------|---------|---------| G|-2-----|-0-0-----|-0-0-----|---0-----| D|---4-4-|-----2-2-|-----2-2-|-2---4-2-| A|-------|---------|---------|---------| E|-------|---------|---------|---------|
e|-------|-----| B|-------|-----| G|-----2-|-----| D|-4-0---|-4-0-| A|-------|-----| E|-------|-----|
Numbers are frets; the bottom line is the low E string.
A Tisket, A Tasket — Ukulele tab
G C E A (high G) · open position
A|-0-|-0---2-|-0-----|-0-0---2-| E|---|---2---|---2---|-----2---| C|---|-------|-------|---------| G|---|-------|-----0-|---------|
A|-0-----|---------|---------|---------| E|---2-2-|-----0-0-|-----0-0-|-0---2-0-| C|-------|---------|---------|---------| G|-------|-0-0-----|-0-0-----|---0-----|
A|-----0-|-----| E|-2-----|-2---| C|---2---|---2-| G|-------|-----|
Numbers are frets; the top line is the A string, the bottom line the high G.
A Tisket, A Tasket chords
D major · 2 chords: D, A7
One box per bar, in the same order as the sheet music. A faded chord carries on from the bar before.
Guitar chords for A Tisket, A Tasket
Strings E A D G B E, low to high · o = open string, × = don't play it
Ukulele chords for A Tisket, A Tasket
Strings G C E A, low to high · o = open string, × = don't play it
Tenor banjo & mandolin chords for A Tisket, A Tasket
Strings G D A E, low to high · o = open string, × = don't play it
More nursery rhymes and tunes like it
This melody comes from The Public Domain Song Anthology (David Berger & Chuck Israels), released CC0. The song is in the public domain. Tabs and letter names worked out by The Music Arcade.