Canon in D

Pachelbel wrote the Canon around 1680 for three violins and continuo. It lay largely forgotten for two centuries before its twentieth-century revival made it one of the most familiar pieces in Western music. The original is a canon over a repeating eight-note bass line, with each violin entering a few bars after the last, so the texture builds in overlapping waves.

This arrangement folds that texture into two hands without losing the shape. The ground bass opens alone in the left hand in even eighths. The right hand enters above it with long-held notes, and later the two swap so the melody passes into the right hand while the left sustains. The imitations stay audible, and near the end dotted rhythms and quicker figures add a little momentum before the closing D major chord.

As a learner's piece it is honest work. You have to read two staves, count the opening rests, keep the accompanying eighths even, and hold long notes with a steady tone while the other hand moves. It is a good introduction to playing the Canon and to hearing two lines at once, and it sits about a grade beyond the Petzold Menuet. Played slowly and evenly, it keeps the dignity of the original.

About this edition

Canon in D, easy piano arrangement by David Hernández, from MuseScore[1], public domain (Public Domain Mark 1.0)[2]. Cropped and de-skewed for display.

Score source · Public Domain