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Canon and Gigue for three violins and basso continuo in D major
1. Canon
2. Gigue
Performed by Hesperion XXI
Directed by Jordi Savall
*Those of you who have never listened to a period instrument performance of Pachelbel’s famous (or for cellists, infamous) canon in D major may be surprised by the rather sprightly tempo of this interpretation. This is because the version we know of today was popularized by Jean-François Paillards recording made in 1970. This performance is very much in the romantic style, which is rather unfitting considering piece written in the middle Baroque. The original score of the piece has no tempo indication for the canon, however the time-signature, the notation of the piece, and the playing style and methodology of Pachelbel and the Baroque era does not suggest that the piece should played at the characteristically romantic “largo molto” tempo most people are used to today. The musicians of Hesperion XXI, known for their authentic, highly informed, and frankly beautiful performances do not try to sound different and stylish, but rather attempt to perform the piece the way Pachelbel himself would have intended it to be performed back in the 1680s on instruments he himself would have been familiar with.
**The chord sequence (I V vi iii IV I ii V7) in this canon is one of the most popular chordal progressions in western music. As well as being found in various classical music pieces, this sequence can also be found in modern pop and rock music. Some examples are the Beatles’ “Let it Be” and Vitamin C’c “Graduation” (which uses the exact same chordal progression as Pachelbel’s canon).
That’s so interesting!! I’m a cellist…yeah, infamous, but I still love it desperately! I want to walk up the aisle to this – yep the 1970s fake tempo.
Thanks for this–it’s great to hear the gigue as well. Thanks to the omnipresent wedding version, we never get to hear the wonderful gigue that goes with the Canon.
Thanks for the historical background on it. I definitely learned something
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Please read the description. Thanks.
This is so fast of a version. How come?
thats a great sound, and its a joy to hear the gigue too!
Hey! this is a great version!, check the one i upload. =)
Love savall.
Fantastic. Thanks so much for posting this performance… I’m looking forward to hearing Hesperion XXI perform at BEMF in October, can’t wait!
Some of my videos have seemingly unrelated tags for the sake of exposure. Alot of my videos have beethoven, mozart, handel tags so that these videos are more likely to show up in those searches, thereby giving my many obscure pieces some exposure.
Thanks for the description, harmmonico. Nice to have a piece on here correctly tagged and given a backround.
hehehe…i agree…
Thanks HARMONICO101 for that thorough caveat to listeners who “do/might not know (yet)…” … :>
I see.
Unfortunately most of them were addicts.
they how did you work with “metal people”?
Psychology Clinic with children and adolescent. I hate adults, they are borring. In the night I hunt rabbits.
What do you do?
heheheheheh
I learned that when I had the oportunity to work with “metal people”. 90% where like I described.
interesting.
The “baroque people” have to write for that bastards to survive! But you can think in those mass’s and motet’s without give attention about the strange things that they are talking about.
It’s different then the “romantic people” who talk to themselves complaining and make lamentations about the state of the innerworld.
If baroque could be consider a little “outside” the romantic is a little “inside”.
Huh????
The barque/classical peroid, which I love were too restriced because people wrote for kings and the church. But in the romantic period people wrote for the sake of writing great music.
I love this painting.
About the guitar and Mozart, I don’t know that issue to talk about it. The most popular music of the metal are the “balads”, even if the people who listen them like to kill little cute rabbits in the knight. The same people who does that things still need a teddy bear to sleep and have scare of the night… maybe the music of Mozart gives them a little confort even if it is played with a metal guitar or a hamer.
You are right,
The scores are for those who wanted to play, and theres a big open space to people create. What I don’t like in this one, is the big space that is occupied by the romantic version. Maybe just 5% of the people that known this piece already listen it like we supose Pachelbel thought!