Piper's SongbookHow to play Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring on recorder
Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring (the triplet melody) uses 11 notes on the soprano recorder: B, A, G, high C, high D, F♯, low E, low D, high E, high G and high F♯. The first line goes G A B D′ C′ C′ E′ D′ D′ G′ F♯′ G′ D′ B G A B C′ D′ E′ D′ C′ B A B G F♯ G A D F♯ A C′ B A.
- Notes
- 11: B, A, G, high C, high D, F♯, low E, low D, high E, high G, high F♯
- Level
- Thumb pinch
- Time
- 9/8, about 84 beats a minute
- Source
- Johann Sebastian Bach, chorale from Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben, BWV 147, 1723
Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring 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
- (rest) G A B D′ C′ C′ E′ D′ | D′ G′ F♯′ G′ D′ B G A B | C′ D′ E′ D′ C′ B A B G | F♯ G A D F♯ A C′ B A
- B G A B D′ C′ C′ E′ D′ | D′ G′ F♯′ G′ D′ B G A B | E D′ C′ B A G D G F♯ | G B D′ G′ D′ B G B D′ | G′
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 Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring
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
Feel the notes in groups of three, with a slight lean on the first of each group. The third bar of the second line starts on low E and jumps straight up to high D: lift the thumb and all fingers except your left middle finger in one movement.
Learn one line at a time. Play it slowly until every note is clean, then join it to the next line.
About the tune
This flowing line comes from a chorale in Bach's cantata Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben, BWV 147, first heard in Leipzig in 1723. The choir sings Johann Schop's hymn tune slowly while this melody runs around it. Myra Hess's piano transcription of 1926 made it famous.
Questions
Is Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring easy on recorder?
It suits a player who already knows the notes from low D to high D. It also needs the thumb pinch for the high notes.
What notes do you need for Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring on recorder?
B, A, G, high C, high D, F♯, low E, low D, high E, high G 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 an organ score of BWV 147 (Internet Archive copy of IMSLP), a MIDI sequence by John Renfro Davis and an ABC transcription in the chrisspen abc-music collection, in the original G. The ABC has typing slips in bars 6 and 7, so the scores were followed. Last checked 6 October 2026.