Write your first handpan melody

01Make one complete bar

Listen to D3, A3, F4, A3 below before worrying about note symbols. Hear it a few times, then hum or tap the four attacks. Use a straight 4/4 grid when you want to keep it. A quarter note is one beat here; 60 BPM is an example tempo, not a target. [3]

02Shape the answer

Play the first two notes as a small question and let F4, A3 answer it. If you want a lighter variation, use D3, A3, rest, F4 with quarter-note values. The rest is part of the melody because it gives the next strike a place to land.

03Select the clearest notation

Use pitch names when choosing or checking D3, A3, and F4. If you prefer jianpu, check the displayed reference, here 1=F before interpreting the numbers; the same digit is only meaningful in that context. Position numbers can support practice on a chosen layout, but do not transfer them blindly between instruments. [1]

04Revise with your ears

Audition the bar after changing a note, a duration, or a rest. Count four beats while listening, then compare the attack points with your intention. If one note arrives too early, correct its duration before changing pitch; otherwise you may hide a rhythm problem under a prettier note choice.

05Use tools as checks

An optional AI suggestion can provide a starting idea, but treat it as a draft and verify every pitch, rest, and duration yourself. Your self-check is simple: one bar equals four beats, the intended phrase reads D3–A3–F4–A3 or its stated variation, and the audition matches your counted pulse. It cannot guarantee the result will fit every handpan's physical layout or timbre.

Hear A and B, then keep two bars in TideTone

Listen to A and B above before entering anything. Hum or tap just the attacks: A has four, B has three. Once you can hear the space on beat three of B, use the grid to keep the idea.

1. Make A: create an empty exercise, select D Kurd 10, straight 4/4 and pitch-name view. On one track, select cells 1, 5, 9 and 13 and tap D3, A3, F4 and A3 on the virtual handpan.
2. Check by listening: play A while counting four beats. If all four notes crowd into beat one, check cell locations before changing tempo.
3. Make B: use the actual demonstration linked below to learn bar duplication. Keep A unchanged. In B, delete F4 on beat three and replace the final A3 with F4. Keep the other attack locations and BPM.
4. Hear A → B: play both bars and compare the space and ending. You need not enter notes and play your physical instrument at the same time. A version you want to hear again is worth saving.
5. Save and check: give it a recognisable name, reopen from the library, check two bars, pitches and BPM, and listen again.

A useful result: hear seven attacks across eight beats and point out that B has no new note on beat three and F4 on beat four. This is a creative choice, not a composition exam.

The grid locates when to attack and which pitch to use without requiring you to memorise every note shape first. To match the quarter-note notation above or export formal notation, also check note values and rests; blank cells alone do not specify extensions or rests. The app does not assess physical striking accuracy.

Actual recording: select a cell, then a tone field · Actual recording: duplicate and edit a phrase · Save and reopen