Canon in C minor for 3 Voices in 1 (doubtful), K. Anh.H 10,22
von Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
The Canon in C minor for three voices in 1 (K. Anh.H 10,22; also transmitted as K. 229 / K. 382a) is a brief unaccompanied vocal piece associated with Mozart’s Vienna years (1782), but its authorship remains doubtful. Even so, it reflects the cultivated taste for compact contrapuntal miniatures in the city’s private musical circles.
Background and Context
The canon is catalogued as a work of doubtful authenticity and nevertheless survives in sources, with the Köchel Verzeichnis Online listing it as “erhalten” (extant) and dated to Vienna, 1782. 1 In that year Mozart, aged 26, had recently settled permanently in Vienna, was building a reputation as pianist-composer, and was also absorbing learned techniques that could be displayed in small-scale genres such as canons.
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A German text is associated with the piece: “Sie ist dahin”, attributed in modern reference listings to Ludwig Christoph Heinrich Hölty (1748–1776). 12 Whether Mozart set this text—or whether the text was attached later in transmission—remains part of the canon’s uncertain documentary profile.
Musical Character
Notated as a canon “for 3 equal voices,” it is designed in 1 (a unison canon): each singer takes up essentially the same melodic line in imitation, creating counterpoint through staggered entries rather than through separate, independently composed parts. 1
In keeping with its C minor tonality, the writing tends toward a sober, compressed intensity rather than genial salon charm—an affect that can make even a miniature feel pointed and deliberate. The likely intended setting is informal: three singers (or a small ensemble reading at sight) could realize the piece quickly, enjoying the intellectual wit of strict imitation without the ceremony of accompaniment. 12
[1] Köchel Verzeichnis Online (Mozarteum): work entry for Anh. H 10,22, including doubtful status, dating (Vienna, 1782), scoring (V1–V3), and associated text/poet.
[2] IMSLP: Canon for 3 Voices in C minor, K.229/382a (“Sie ist dahin”) — basic work data (year, key, scoring, text attribution) and links to NMA materials.