Sakura Sakura - Sheet Music for Native American Flute

Sakura Sakura is a traditional Japanese folk song based on a poem about Cherry Blossoms in the springtime.

The melody uses a scale called Hirajoshi. While this scale is attainable on a flutes tuned to the Pentatonic Minor scale (the common scale for present-day Native American flutes), the range of the melody is not well-suited to these instruments. However, flutes made with Anasazi tuning and Anasazi-7 tuning as well as diatonic flutes can easily play this melody.

The transcriptions on this page are based on the earliest English-language publication that provides this melody ([Izawa 1888] ).

Recording

Here is a recording I made on October 9, 2011 on a Bb EZ Anasazi flute by Stephen DeRuby of Native Love Flutes. This flute uses the Anasazi-7 tuning shown below. It has an improvised introduction before launching into the melody. This is a rather free interpretation of the melody typical of the style used by some Japanese Shakuhachi players:

Sheet Music - Key of A Hirajoshi - Fingerings for Anasazi Tuned Flutes

Sakura - Key of A Hirajoshi - Fingerings for Anasazi Tuned Flutes

Sheet Music - Nakai Tablature - Fingerings for Anasazi Tuned Flutes

Sakura - Nakai Tablature - Fingerings for Anasazi Tuned Flutes

Sheet Music - Key of A Hirajoshi - Fingerings for Anasazi-7 Tuned Flutes

Sakura - Key of A Hirajoshi - Fingerings for Anasazi-7 Tuned Flutes

Sheet Music - Nakai Tablature - Fingerings for Anasazi-7 Tuned Flutes

Sakura - Nakai Tablature - Fingerings for Anasazi-7 Tuned Flutes

Sheet Music - Nakai Tablature - Fingerings for Diatonic Tuned Flutes

Sakura - Nakai Tablature - Fingerings for Diatonic Tuned Flutes