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left handright hand8vaDE♭Ff123G♯C♯BB♭ECB♭123E♭Cupper body · left handlower body · right hand8vaDE♭Ff123G♯C♯BB♭ECB♭123E♭C
B♭3sounds C♯3Low octave
SongsCanon in D
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1 more song needs notes this instrument does not have. Changing the key brings some of them into reach.

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Johann Pachelbel, c. 1680. Public domain.

32 notes · B♭3–F6 written · sounds C♯3–A♭5 · 32 notes · The E♭ alto: the saxophone almost everyone starts on, in school bands and jazz alike. Sounds a major sixth below the part.

Tap a note, or slide along them to slur from note to note in one breath. On a keyboard the letters on the notes are the ones to press — Q is written low B♭ and they climb a semitone at a time.

SaxophoneFree · printable · plays in your browser

Canon in D — Saxophone Notes

Canon in D (the opening line), written out for the saxophone as letter notes with the fingering drawn under each one and set up above on the Alto. Press Play to hear it, Practice to learn it one note at a time — the saxophone waits for you — or Play along to keep time with it.

  • Notes17, 10 pitches
  • RangeC4–E5
  • Key hereC major
  • Tempo72 bpm · about 15 s
  • LevelIntermediate

Can a saxophone play Canon in D?

Yes — every one on this page plays it. The check is made note by note against what each one can actually sound. Where the tune does not fit as the library writes it, another key or octave is tried, and the table says which; where nothing fits, it names the notes that are missing.

  • Alto✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–E5 · loaded above
  • Tenor✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–E5 · load it
  • Soprano✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–E5 · load it
  • Baritone✓ Plays as writtenIn C major, C4–E5 · load it

The notes here are written pitch, which is what a saxophone player reads. On the Alto this sounds in E♭ major.

Canon in D: saxophone notes

The large line is the note, and the drawing is its fingering — a filled hole or key is one that is down. A dash holds the note another beat, an underline is half a beat, and a dot beside a note makes it half as long again. Each line is one phrase.

▶ Play it above

Canon in D — saxophone notes (Alto) · tonalics.com

The 10 notes it uses

Lowest to highest, with how many times each is played. Learn these 10 and you can play the whole tune.

  • CC4×1
  • DD4×1
  • EE4×1
  • FF4×2
  • GG4×2
  • AA4×3
  • BB4×3
  • CC5×2
  • DD5×1
  • EE5×1

What to expect on a saxophone

  • It runs from C4 to E5, an octave and a major third, using 10 different notes. That leaves 2 semitones unused below and 13 above.
  • 94% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a minor third, F4 to D4, at note 16.
  • It crosses the break once — between C♯5 and D5, where the octave key comes in — which is the hard part of this tune on this instrument.

About the tune

Pachelbel wrote the Canon and Gigue in D for three violins and bass around 1680. It was almost forgotten until a 1968 recording made it one of the most played pieces of baroque music and a fixture at weddings.

Johann Pachelbel, c. 1680. Public domain. More about Canon in D →

Canon in D on other instruments

The same melody, in each instrument’s own notation. It is not offered for the guzheng or handpan, which do not have the notes.

More songs for the saxophone

All 36 saxophone songs · Christmas songs for saxophone · The online saxophone on its own

Playing it on a real saxophone?

If it sounds wrong, check the instrument before the notes. The saxophone tuner listens through your microphone and names what each note is actually sounding.

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