Piper's SongbookHow to play Can-Can on recorder
Can-Can (the Galop infernal) uses 11 notes on the soprano recorder: B, A, G, high C, high D, low E, low D, high E, high G, F and high F. The first line goes G C′ D′ F′ E′ D′ G′ G G A E F. The same tune is used for Galop infernal.
- Notes
- 11: B, A, G, high C, high D, low E, low D, high E, high G, F, high F
- Level
- Cross fingerings
- Time
- 2/4, about 120 beats a minute
- Source
- Jacques Offenbach, Orpheus in the Underworld, 1858
Can-Can recorder notes with letters
Each box is one note, with its fingering underneath: filled holes are covered, a half-filled hole is half covered or pinched. Wider boxes are longer notes. A ′ mark means the higher octave, so D′ is high D. Bar lines are drawn as thin rules.
Line 1
Line 2
Line 3
Line 4
Letters only, for printing or copying
- G | C′ | D′ F′ E′ D′ | G′ G | G A E F
- D D′ | D′ F′ E′ D′ | C′ C′ B A | G F′ E′ D′
- C′ | D′ F′ E′ D′ | G′ G | G A E F
- D D′ | D′ F′ E′ D′ | C′ G′ D′ E′ | C′
Sheet music
Written pitch for soprano recorder, which sounds an octave higher. Press play to hear it on a recorder sound; the slow setting plays at 60% speed.
Fingerings for the notes in Can-Can
Hole 0 is the thumb hole on the back. Holes 1 to 3 are for the left hand, 4 to 7 for the right. These are Baroque (English) fingerings.
How to practise it
Watch the octave jumps. In the third bar high G drops to G an octave below, and in the fifth bar low D jumps to high D. For high G, pinch the thumb with the three left fingers down; for G, close the thumb hole fully and keep the same fingers.
Learn one line at a time. Play it slowly until every note is clean, then join it to the next line.
About the tune
Offenbach's operetta Orpheus in the Underworld opened in Paris on 21 October 1858, and this galop comes from its final scene. In the 1890s the Moulin Rouge and the Folies Bergère used it for the can-can, and the two have gone together ever since.
Questions
Is Can-Can easy on recorder?
It is an intermediate piece. It uses cross fingerings or half holes, so learn those notes on their own first.
What notes do you need for Can-Can on recorder?
B, A, G, high C, high D, low E, low D, high E, high G, F and high F. Tap a note to see its fingering on its own page.
Do these fingerings work on a German recorder?
Mostly. F and high F are fingered differently on a German recorder; the diagrams above are Baroque, and the linked note pages show both. A recorder whose hole 4 is smaller than hole 5 is Baroque.
More recorder songs
Notes checked against the chorus melody in the Bote & Bock vocal score and John Chambers's ABC, transposed from D to C. The ABC keeps some notes in one octave where the score leaps; this follows the score. Last checked 6 October 2026.