TwelveCanons - pjb.com.au · and for piano.It should run at about three seconds per bar,and last about two minutes. Double-Canon at Four Semitones,with voice-crossings allowed, is

Twelve Canons

by Peter Billam

© Peter J Billam, 2009-2010

This score is offered under the

Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International

licence; see creativecommons.org

This edition 18 February 2014.

www.pjb.com.au

These pieces are mostly strict canons, at different distances, from one semitone totwelve semitones. The first canon, Double-Canon at One Semitone, should lastabout two and a half minutes.

At Two Semitones, is mostly conceived for piano; it should run at about sevennotes per second, lasting about 96 seconds.

At Three Semitones, is offered in two versions: in open score (e.g. for string trio),and for piano. It should run at about three seconds per bar, and last about twominutes.

Double-Canon at Four Semitones, with voice-crossings allowed, is offered in twoversions: in open score, and arranged for piano four hands. It should run at about86 beats per minute, lasting just over two minutes.

At Five Semitones, a three-voice canon with two free voices, is offered in openscore, playable on piano with three or four hands. It should run at about threeseconds per bar, and last about two and three-quarter minutes.

At Six Semitones, a two-voice canon, is mostly conceived for piano; it should runat about 52 crochets per second, lasting about two and a quarter minutes.

At Seven Semitones, a close three-voice canon, is mostly conceived for piano; itshould run at about 126 crochets per second, lasting nearly three minutes. Thetriple-trills can be played either with three hands, or with three-note arpeggios ineach hand and a bit of pedal, or in regular semiquavers.

At Eight Semitones, also mostly conceived for piano, should run at about 54crochets per second, lasting just over two minutes twenty seconds.

At Nine Semitones, should run at about 51 bars per minute, lasting almost twominutes twenty seconds. For the first 81 bars the canon is at at one bar’s distance,bars 82-109 at one beat’s distance, and the remaining bars at a distance of onesemiquaver. It is probably best on three hands.

At Ten Semitones should run at 60 quarters per minute, lasting about three minutesthirty-six seconds. It is best if the canonic voices are a string quartet (ororchestra). The Bb pedal on a piano could be supported by a long note on a celloC-string tuned down two semitones.

At Eleven Semitones is a four-voice canon, and should run at about 75 quarters perminute. It could be played by four hands, or by violin, viola and two celli, or flute,clarinet and two basoons, or flute, clarinet and piano.

The final canon, At Twelve Semitones, should last just over two minutes.

Peter J Billam, www.pjb.com.au

Double−canon at one semitone3Twelve Canons, Peter Billam

(c) 2009 Peter J Billam

4444

4444

5

10

3 3

3 15 3

3 3 3 3 3

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4 Double−canon at one semitone


20 3

3

3 3

3

3 3 3

3 3

3

3

3

3 3

25 33

3 33

3

3 33 3 3

3 3

30

35

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Canon at two semitones5Peter Billam


916

816

5916

10

816

816

15

916

916

20

1416

1416

25

1616

1616

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6 Canon at two semitones


916

916

30

1416

1416

1616

1616

35

1316

f

1316

816

816

1316

1316

816

816

40

1316

1316

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7Canon at two semitones


816

816

1316

1316

816

816

45

1316

1316

816

816

1316

1316

816

816

50

1316

1316

816

816

1316

1316

55

816

816

1316

1316

816

816

1316

1316

60

816

816

1316

1316

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Canon at three semitones8 Peter Billam


in open score

98

98

98

5

10

15

20

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9Canon at three semitones


25

30

35

40

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Canon at three semitones10 Peter Billam


for keyboard

98

9898

5

10

15

20

25

30

35 40

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Double canon at four semitones11Peter Billam


in open score

p

p

p

f

p

f

f

p

f

p

5p

f

p

f

p

p

f

f

p

p

10

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12 Double canon at four semitones


15

f

f

p

p

f

20 f

p

p

f

f p

p

f

f p

f

p

fp

p f

25 fp

p

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13Double canon at four semitones


f

f

30

f

p

f

p

p

f

p

f

35 f

p

f

p

p

p

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40

f

f

p

p

f

f

p

f

p

f

45

p

p

f

f

p

p

50

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55

f

f

f

p

f

p60

p

f

f

f

p

f

p

65p

f

p

f

p

p

f

f

p70

p

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f

f

p

75

p

f

f

p

p

mf

mf

pmf

p

80f p

p

mf

f

pf

p

f85

p

p

mf

f

f

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Double canon at four semitones17Peter Billam


arranged for four hands

p

f

f

f

p

f

5f

f

p

f

f

p

p

10

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15

f

f

f

20 f p

f

f p

f

f

f

f

f

25 fp

p

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f

f

30

f

p

f

f

f

35 f

p

f

p

p

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40

f

f

p

p

f

f

p

f

p

f

45

p

p

f

f

p

p

50

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55

f

f

f

p

p60

p

f

f

f

p

65f

p

f

f

p

f

f

p

p

70

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f

f

75

mf

mf

80

pmf

mf

mf 85

pmf

f

f

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23Canon at five semitones

Peter Billam


with two free voicespp sempre

5

10

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24 Canon at five semitones


15

20

25

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25Canon at five semitones


30

33

3 35 33

3 40

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26 Canon at five semitones


45

50

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Canon at six semitones27Peter Billam


Ped

3

con Pedale sempre . . .

3 3

Ped

3 3 3

5 3 3 38va − −

3 3

3

10 − Loc.

8va − −

− Loc.

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28 Canon at six semitones


15

33 3

3 20

3 3 3

3 3 3

3

3 3 3

25 3 3 3

pp

*

* ___*

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Canon at seven semitones29Peter Billam


32

32

32

5

54

54

54

32

32

32

10

15

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30 Canon at seven semitones


3

3 3

3 3

203

3

3 3

3 3

3 3

3 3

54

3 3

54

3

54

25

32

32

32

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31Canon at seven semitones


54

54

54

3032

32

32

35

40

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32 Canon at seven semitones


45

508

8

8

tr

p

tr

p

tr

p

8

8

8

tr

tr

tr

f

55 allargando

f

f

sempre cresc . . .

pp

60

pp

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Canon at eight semitones33Peter Billam


84

3

84

33

3

3

53

33 3 3

33

33

33

Ped PedP _*_* P

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34 Canon at eight semitones


Ped

3

3

Ped

f

3 3

PedPed

1033

Ped

3

forte

*

33

dim . . .

3

15

p ppp

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35Canon at nine semitones

Peter Billam


916

916

916

5

10

15

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36 Canon at nine semitones


20

25

30

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35

40

45

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50

55

60

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65

70

75

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80

85

90

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95

100

105

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110

115

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43Canon at ten semitones

Peter Billam


8484

mp le corde . . .

8484

Vn2

legatiss.

84

3 3 3 3

ppuna corda con Pedale . . .

Vn1 (G to F# !)

Va

3 3 3 3

Vc

3 3 3 3

104104

104104

Vn2

104

3 3 3 3 3

5Vn1

8484

Va

8484

84

3 3 3 3

Vc

3 3 3 3

Vn2

3 3 3 3

Vn1

Va

3 3 3 3

Vc

3 3 3 3

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44 Canon at ten semitones


10

6464

6464

Va

64

3 3 3

Vn18484

Vc

8484

84

3 3 3 3

Vn2

3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

Vn1

Vc

Va3 3 3 3

15

Vn2

3 3 3 3

3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

Va

Vn1

3 3 3 3

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45Canon at ten semitones


3 3 3 3

203

Vn2

3 3

3 3 3 3

Vn13

3 Va

33

3 3 3 3

3

Vc

Va

3 3 3 3

Vn2

Vn1

3

3 3 3 3 3 3 3

25

Vn1

Va

Vn23 3 3 3

Vc

3 3 3 3 3 3 3

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46Canon at eleven semitones

Peter Billam


4444

4444

5

10

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47Canon at Eleven semitones


15

20

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48 Canon at Eleven semitones


25

30

tr

tr

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49Canon at Eleven semitones


tr

tr

35

40

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Canon at twelve semitones50 Peter Billam


5

10

15

20

25

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51Canon at twelve semitones


30

35

40

45

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ccBY

Peter Billam was born in London in 1948, studied piano, and lived in Switzerland from 1973 to

1983, where he studied composition, classical guitar, flute and voice, worked as Musical Director

of the Théâtre Populaire Romand, and as recording engineer, record producer and computer

programmer. He moved to Tasmania in 1983, and lectured in composition at the Conservatorium.

He founded www.pjb.com.au, becoming the first composer to sell scores on-line, taking scores

from Composer to Performer in one immediate step. Www.pjb.com.au offers a new approach to

music publishing. These pieces are written to be read, made to be played !

Compositions at www.pjb.com.au include: Five Short Pieces, guitar, 1979; Divisions on an Italian

Ground, flute and guitar, 1980; De Profundis and Nacht, on poems by Lama Anagarika Govinda, voice and

piano, 1980; Fünf Bagatellen, piano, 1980; Five Rounds, choir, 1986; Go Forth and Multiply, choir, 1986;

Three Violin Duets, 1987; Fable, for piano, 1987; To Erich Jantsch, SAATTB recorders, 1988; A Suite of

Curves, trombone (or horn) and piano, 1990; Two Recorder Duets, alto recorders, or other melody

instruments, 1991; Tr ombone Quintet, trombone, flute, piano, bass, and percussion, 1994; Three Songs, on

poems by Jack Kerouac, Vikram Seth and Dylan Thomas, voice and piano (only the first and third of these are

available), 1994; Piano Study, piano, 1994; Four Dances, various ensembles including recorder quartet,

string quartet, 1995; The Poet in the Clouds, on a poem by S. T. Coleridge, SATB choir, 1995; Tr es Casidas

del Diván del Tamarit, on poems by Federico García Lorca, voice and piano, 1997; Three Suites, for the

solo line, piano, and piano and a solo line, 2000; Die Zeiten, on poems by Kästner, Bachman and Jünger,

choir (only the second and third of these are available), 2000; Three Duets for flutes, 2001; For Four Hands for

piano four hands, 2002; Three Preludes for piano, 2003; Second Solo Suite for flute, violin, viola or cello,

2003; Guitar Duet for two guitars, 2006; We Who Mourn for choir, 2007; Trio With Guitar for guitar and

two clarinets or two recorders or two violas, 2008; Canons for two- and four-hand piano, 2009; Flute Trio,

2012; Twenty Studies for piano, 2013-14; Music for Strings and Two Encores for Strings for 2vln, 2vla,

2vlc, 2015; Album for Choir, 2015; Eight Pieces for Guitar, 2017.

Arrangements include: By J. S. Bach: Trio BWV 655, piano and flute; Vor deinen Thron BWV 668,

piano; Fugue in F minor BWV 689, SATB recorders; Four Duets BWV 802-5, keyboard; Six Preludes and

Fugues from Book I, keyboard; Flute Sonata BWV 1031 in G major for alto recorder and keyboard; Flute

Sonata BWV 1032 completed by Peter Billam for flute and keyboard, also in C major for alto recorder, and

in G major for descant; Ricercare a 3 of the Musikalisches Opfer for keyboard; Ricercare a 6, for sSATBG

recorders, or strings, or two keyboards; and Fuga Canonica; from the Art of Fugue: Contrapuncti 1, 4 and 9

for keyboard, and Contrapunctus 14 as completed by D. F. Tovey, for keyboard, or for SATB recorders, or

for strings; Passacaglia and Fugue in c for piano four hands; Chorales with Descant for melody instrument

and piano; Cello Suites I, II and III for flute or alto recorder, Forty Chorales for piano, Der Geist hilft for

SATB-SATB recorders. By Bartók: Suite op.14 for piano. By Brahms: Fugue in Ab minor for organ, for

SATB recorders and gamba, in A minor; Choralvorspiele for organ plus settings by Isaac, Bach, Praetorius,

recorders. John Carr, Divisions on an Italian Ground, flute or recorder and guitar. Franz Liszt, Late piano

pieces, G.F. Händel: Concerto Grosso in A minor op 6 no 4, harpsichord and recorders; Recorder Sonata in

Bb no 5, in G for tenor recorder and keyboard. Claudio Monteverdi, Ecco Mormorar l’Onde, SSATB

recorders. Arnold Schoenberg: Verklärte Nacht for piano. Franz Schubert: Four Songs, voice and guitar;

Dances, recorders and guitar, Dances, piano 4 hands. Scriabin, Two Preludes op.67; Five Preludes op.74,

piano. Telemann, Twelve Flute Fantasias and Six Duets, recorder. Wilbye, Draw on sweet Night, SSATTB

recorders, and for flute choir. Twelve Italian Songs and Seven English Songs, voice and guitar; Folk Guitar

Solos; Fourteen Folk Dance Tunes, recorder and guitar; Bushband Dances, violin, accordeon and banjo;

Easy Classical Pieces, Bb trumpet and piano; Famous Beginnings, for piano.

These pieces are under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. Very briefly:

• You may copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format.

• You may transform and build upon the material for any purpose.

• You must give appropriate credit, and indicate if changes were made.

Feel free to visit . . . www.pjb.com.au

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TwelveCanons - pjb.com.au · and for piano.It should run at about three seconds per bar,and last about two minutes. Double-Canon at Four Semitones,with voice-crossings allowed, is