Is Pachelbel Canon the same as Canon in D?

We must confess to having pinched this blog article from “16 Strings” but thought they did a pretty good job of summing it up!

Why is the Pachelbel Canon so popular at weddings?

Why Is Canon In D Such A Popular Wedding Song?

The Canon in D by Pachelbel is perhaps one of the most well-known songs used during wedding ceremonies. Some people feel that it is overused, to the point where listeners have become jaded and no longer feel the same emotional response towards it. But we would tend to disagree because to us, Canon In D sounds like a wedding and it’s the perfect song to walk down the aisle to. Although it may have originally been only a small piece of work for a gathering  – the ‘canon’ of the title refers to a minor piece often played in the background at social events  – it is now so frequently used that some people are surprised when it is not part of the ceremony. So Why is the Pachelbel Canon so popular at weddings?

The Pachelbel Canon in D is perhaps favoured in part due to its religious connections, as Pachelbel is more well-known in classical circles for this religious or sacred music. In comparison with most of his other pieces, the Canon in D is a relatively light and minor work which would probably be rarely played today, except for the attraction that it has for some couples on their wedding day. This baroque piece was only discovered (or rediscovered) during the early part of the 20th century, and was then turned into sheet music. Again, it sank back into obscurity, only regaining its popularity in the late ’60s and ’70s.

The reasons why Canon in D became so popular after 300 years in the background still seem obscure. It was popularised in a film, Ordinary People, but this was not really connected with marriage. Instead, it seems to have been picked up from that film, and gradually become accepted in wedding ceremonies because of its extremely attractive sound. It is a typically baroque tune, in that it seems elegant and charming, but is very simple to play, with a repeating melody which produces good harmony and sound.

The easy tune and memorable harmonies mean that people have become familiar with the tune, and now have an attachment to it, due to the emotions that it stirs up. They might have heard it at previous ceremonies, and formed a mental link between the sound of Canon in D, and the memories of the emotions which weddings bring. When they come to choose the songs for their own weddings, the Canon seems appropriate due to the memories and feelings that it awakes in them. As it is so common in weddings, couples may feel that any other sound would be inappropriate.

There are other reasons why the Canon in D is so popular. For example, many people only have a limited knowledge of classical music, and most of the familiar songs are not appropriate for a wedding ceremony. So the Canon is selected as the most memorable and appropriate piece of classical music that the couple can remember. They may also be advised to choose it by their minister, the registrar, or even the musicians themselves, as it is a simple, repeating tune which can be played until everyone is ready, and then finished, without people feeling upset at the repetition, or at the sudden stop.

Before Pachelbel’s Canon in D is dismissed or eternally embraced, I propose we examine the work and its context a little closer. Johann Pachelbel was German baptized, in Nuremberg in 1653 and lived until the age of 52, dying in Nuremberg in 1706. (His precise date of birth is not known). By many accounts, Pachelbel was a prolific composer in his day, a fine organ player and teacher.  His early years indicate that he was a gifted performer and very aware of the great composers of the time who he studied. At the age of fifteen Pachelbel enrolled as a student at Altdorf University where he would have studied a variety of traditional subjects. Pachelbel also served as organist locally but his stay was not to last as there were financial complications that eventually meant the young Pachelbel would move to Vienna.

Vienna was to be the making of the aspiring composer and organist. He moved to the city in 1673 where he was fortunate enough to become the deputy organist at St. Stephens Cathedral. At the time it is worth remembering that Vienna was the at the centre of European culture and exactly where a young musician needed to be.  It was during this time in Vienna that Pachelbel had the important chance to study the influential composers of the day. He found he had a fondness for the Italian style of music making which tended to avoid the weighty complexities of masters like Buxtehude. This did not mean that Pachelbel was not a fine contrapuntist but that he enjoyed the richness of melody and colourful, almost transparent harmonies.

The Canon in D major was composed somewhere around 1680, but the exact date is uncertain. The work is scored for three violins and a continuo. (This often comprised of a cello and organ who played the harmony and bass parts of the music and acted as a kind of musical glue, holding the performers together). It was not published on its own. The piece that follows the canon is a Gigue, (a lively dance similar to a reel). This piece is also delightful, yet seldom performed with the more popular canon.

At the time of its composition, the work did not stand out in any way from his already substantial output of choral, instrumental and chamber music. It was, in fact, the only canon Pachelbel ever wrote. The vast majority of Pachelbel’s compositions were Chorales and Chorale Preludes. This was for two reasons, the first being it was his job to write these pieces and secondly because there is evidence to say that Pachelbel believed these pieces to be morally uplifting and spiritually important. It wasn’t really until the early 1970’s that the Canon re-surfaced only then to be adopted and effectively remodelled into a vast array of pop songs.

Brief musical analysis

(The score is available here)

The popularity of the canon can perhaps be attributed in some part to the progression of chords the work uses and it’s light, playful melody. If you analyse the chords you quickly discover that Pachelbel uses all the chords we enjoy hearing in successful popular songs and many other more serious pieces of music. Pachelbel provides a bass that gives an ideal opportunity for an appealing blend of both major and minor chords from which the melody springs. (D major/A major/B minor/F# minor or D over F#/G major/D major/G major/A major). The return to the dominant or fifth chord at the end of the sequence always leads the ear back to the home key and chord of D major but also gives the feeling of moving on. This is cleverly designed by Pachelbel to create this effect.

In the canon, the same bass line that is eight notes long, is repeated throughout the piece. (Technically referred to as a Ground Bass and consists of the notes D, A, B, F#, G, D, G, A), over which the chords are played. The bass is heard first followed by the first violin that plays a falling line. The nature of a canon is that it is full of imitation. This means one instrument copies another instrument. (If you remember singing Frere Jacque at school, then you’ll know what a canon is and sounds like). Next comes the second violin imitating the first violin. Finally, the third violin enters imitating the second violin. Pachelbel builds the texture of the canon through imitation and underneath maintains the same bass line for the duration of the piece.

As a musical composition it could have suffered from being overly repetitive but instead, Pachelbel avoids this by exploring the harmonic and melodic possibilities of the original bass line. The piece is also highly expressive and even though Pachelbel may not have added the dynamic (volume) markings in the score originally, the dynamic implications in the melody are intuitively interpreted. It brings the music to life.

This modest but delightful piece of music was not perhaps what Pachelbel himself would have wished to have been known for but without a doubt has become one of the most popular pieces in the classical repertoire. It has also been the basis for many, many other compositions. The sheer quantity of songs that include or are in fact an exact copy of the Pachelbel chords is too many to mention individually by name. Instead, I thought I would include a few links to the best of these just below. I hope you enjoy listening to the original canon and the pieces that it has given birth to.

Pachelbel Links:

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/PachelbelsCanonProgression

https://open.spotify.com/user/1123411312/playlist/5EMUFCLRPRQB6Qv1sLIb2v

https://www.whosampled.com/Johann-Pachelbel/Canon-in-D-Major/sampled