I know growing up I loved playing The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. This past autumn, my love was renewed with the release of the updated 3DS version. One of the Special Editions of the game came with a plastic replica ocarina and songbook. I was so put out that I couldn’t get my own ocarina and play all my favorite melodies…until I used my noodle and Googled it up. My savior came in the form of STL Ocarina and their vast selection of a variety of ocarinas. I ended up getting myself a nice little set of clay ocarinas; a 12-Hold Ocarina of Time and matching 6-Hole Rupee ocarina (found here).

Pros:

• Both ocarinas are easy to learn on
• The set I got came with two song books and fingering charts for both ocarinas
• They both came with cords to go around your neck to avoid damage to the ocarina (this does NOT hamper sound)
• STL Ocarina has a slew of online teaching tools to help you along (including videos)
• STL also has a helpful Finger Composer program for 12-Hold C Major, 12-Hole F Major, 12-Hole G Major, 6-Hole, Double and Triple Ocarinas

Cons:

• STL does assumes you know automatically know which Major Scale your 12-Hold is in
• They are made from clay and have a higher chance of being broken from a fall (The 12-Hole does come with a thin case)
• Although the set I got came with two books, they teach you in tabs/number charts, rather than in sheet music. Some people might find this easier, but I found it annoying. It was okay for little tunes, but when trying to learn more complicated music, it becomes an annoyance as you have to re-learn how to read the music.

Overall, I would suggest getting the ocarina if you want that nostalgic feel as well as the fun of learning a new and pretty easy instrument, but start with sheet music and a fingering chart as soon as possible so you have more variety for when and if you choose to expand from the Ocarina of Time melodies. I highly suggest to people wanting to start playing (or even just getting this for fun) to check out The Ocarina Network. TON has a ton of great resources for new and experienced ocarina players, and it was thanks

To their community that I learned that my 12-Hole was in the C Major scale.

I hope this helps any nostalgia hunters or people interested in the ocarina as an instrument!

- Lauren