Best ocarina for beginners: how to choose your first one

Ocarinas come in many shapes and sizes. For a beginner, one kind stands out: the 12-hole alto C. This is how to choose it, what to check before you buy, and when a cheaper one is the better first step.

Why a 12-hole alto C

• 12 holes give you the full range: ten for the fingers and thumbs, and two tiny sub holes for the lowest notes. It plays an octave and a half, enough for almost any tune.
• Alto is the middle size: big enough for your hands, with a warm, mellow sound. A soprano is smaller and higher, a bass larger and lower.
• In C means the notes are named as written, so songs and charts read as they are. It is often marked “AC” on the ocarina or in its listing.

Ocarina Quest teaches this one, and it also works with sopranos and basses in C, G or F: same fingerings, different pitch.

6, 10 or 12 holes

• 6 holes (small pendant ocarinas) play about nine notes, with no sharps or flats and none of the low or high notes. They are cute and cheap, but most tunes and charts for a 12-hole go beyond their range.
• 10 holes usually play the natural notes from low C to high F, with the same fingerings as the 12-hole, but without the sub holes: no low A, B♭ or B, and no C♯ or D♯. They suit many tunes, but some songs need the extra notes.
• 12 holes add the two sub holes, which reach down to low A and give C♯ and D♯. Most fingering charts, tabs and lesson books use this layout, and Ocarina Quest teaches it.

If you are not sure, the 12-hole is the safe choice: whatever you learn on it carries to the others, and the charts you find online will match your instrument.

Ceramic or plastic: start with plastic if unsure

• Ceramic is the classic: the warmest sound, and the widest choice. It breaks if dropped, so keep it on a strap or in a case.
• Plastic is light, cheap and almost unbreakable, good for children and for travel, with a brighter sound.

If you are unsure you will keep playing, start with plastic. It teaches you exactly the same fingerings and breath, and if you stay with it, a ceramic one later will feel like a treat. If you know you will play for years, go straight to ceramic and look after it.

What to check before you buy

• It says 12 holes, alto and C (or “AC”).
• It comes with a fingering chart, a case or bag, and a neck strap.
• Reviews mention that it plays in tune. Cheap ocarinas can be out of tune on a few notes; Ocarina Quest measures each of your notes and adapts, but a well-tuned one sounds better.

Where to look

Music shops and ocarina makers sell good instruments, and so does Amazon. These searches show 12-hole alto C ocarinas:

Then what

When it arrives, play your first notes, and keep the fingering chart at hand. If a note sounds airy or flat, this guide finds the cause.