Piper's SongbookHow to play Pachelbel's Canon on recorder
Pachelbel's Canon (the violin melody) uses 12 notes on the soprano recorder: A, G, high C, high D, low D, high E, high G, F, B♭, high F, high A and very high C. The first line goes A′ G′ F′ E′ D′ C′ D′ E′ F′ E′ D′ C′ B♭ A B♭ G. The same tune is used for Canon in D.
- Notes
- 12: A, G, high C, high D, low D, high E, high G, F, B♭, high F, high A, very high C
- Level
- Cross fingerings
- Time
- 4/4, about 60 beats a minute
- Source
- Johann Pachelbel, Canon and Gigue in D for three violins and continuo, late 1600s
Pachelbel's Canon 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
Letters only, for printing or copying
- A′ G′ F′ E′ | D′ C′ D′ E′ | F′ E′ D′ C′ | B♭ A B♭ G
- F A C′ B♭ A F A G | F D F C′ B♭ D′ C′ B♭ | A F G E′ F′ A′ C″ C′ | D′ B♭ C′ A F F′ F′ E′ | F′
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 Pachelbel's Canon
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
The second line drops to low D in its second bar and climbs to very high C in its third. For very high C, pinch the thumb and keep down only your left index finger plus your right index and middle fingers. Release the pinch straight away for the high C that follows.
Learn one line at a time. Play it slowly until every note is clean, then join it to the next line.
About the tune
Johann Pachelbel wrote this canon for three violins over a bass line that repeats every two bars. Nobody knows exactly when, and the oldest surviving copy was made around 1840. It was first printed in 1919, and a 1968 recording by Jean-François Paillard's orchestra made it famous.
Questions
Is Pachelbel's Canon 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 Pachelbel's Canon on recorder?
A, G, high C, high D, low D, high E, high G, F, B♭, high F, high A and very high C. Tap a note to see its fingering on its own page.
Do these fingerings work on a German recorder?
Mostly. F, B♭ 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 first violin part in the Wikipedia score excerpt and John Chambers's ABC of the Kanon und Gigue, transposed from D to F. Last checked 6 October 2026.