It doesn't take much to be happy

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It takes little to be happy is a canon from the 19th century . The composition comes from August Mühling (1786–1847), who wrote the song as part of his Gesänge Op. 5 should have published; there, however, at least the first edition from 1812 cannot be traced.

The original text has been documented several times in literature since the end of the 18th century. The earliest currently known evidence can be found in 1770 in Christian Felix Weißes libretto to Johann Adam Hiller's opera Die Jagd . Since Mühling had sung in Leipzig as a Thomaner under Hiller, it is reasonable to assume that he knew the text from this very context. In 1778 the verse is quoted in Wilhelm Christhelf Sigmund Mylius ' Posse Hanswurst or Doctor nolens volens in a way that suggests that the sentence could have been known as a “ winged word ” even then . From 1792 the text is also available as a poetry album slogan occupied.

Dominant and tonic alternate regularly in each bar, which, in addition to the voice guidance, is one of the prerequisites for this song to be sung as a four-part canon.

Text and melody

It takes little to
be happy , and whoever is happy is a king!

Trivia

The canon is often sung on birthdays .

Because of its simple melody, “ To be happy is needed” is still popular today as a canon in kindergartens and elementary schools .

Footnotes

  1. ↑ It doesn't take much to be happy. In: volksliederarchiv.de. Retrieved September 15, 2020 .
  2. ↑ It doesn't take much to be happy. In: lieder-archiv.de. Retrieved September 14, 2020 .
  3. ^ Mühling, August . In: Wilibald Gurlitt (Ed.): Riemann Musiklexikon . 12th, completely revised edition. Persons part: L-Z . Schott, Mainz 1961, p. 277 .
  4. ↑ a b Axel Beer:  Mühling, August. In: Ludwig Finscher (Hrsg.): The music in past and present . Second edition, personal section, volume 12 (Mercadante - Paix). Bärenreiter / Metzler, Kassel et al. 2004, ISBN 3-7618-1122-5  ( online edition , subscription required for full access)
  5. ↑ Theo Mang, Sunhilt Mang (ed.): Der Liederquell . Noetzel, Wilhelmshaven 2007, ISBN 978-3-7959-0850-8 , pp. 769-770 .
  6. ↑ August Mühling: Collection of two- and three-part chants: for female voices with arbitrary accompaniment of the clavier or pianofort: especially set and intended for the secondary school in Nordhausen. Nitzsche, Nordhausen 1812 ( digitized version ).
  7. ^ Johann Adam Hiller: The hunt. A comical opera. Vocal score. Breitkopf, Leipzig 1771, p. 88 f. ( Digitized version ).
  8. ^ Christian Felix Weisse: Comical Operas. Third part: the hunt. The harvest wreath. Dyk, Leipzig 1777, p. 121 ( digitized in the Google book search).
  9. ^ Britta Domke: Anton Mathias Sprickmann as a playwright. Aisthesis, Bielefeld 1999, ISBN 3-89528-279-0 , p. 127 ( limited preview in the Google book search).
  10. ^ Wilhelm Christhelf Sigmund Mylius: Hanswurst Doctor nolens, volens or What does not woman revenge! Posse. 2nd Edition. Flittner, Naumburg 1778, p. 37 ( digitized in the Google book search).
  11. ^ Gertrud Angermann: Family books and poetry albums as a mirror of their time. Aschendorff, Münster 1971, p. 122 ( limited preview in the Google book search). Quoted from: Otto Holzapfel : Lied index: The older German-language popular song tradition ( online version on the Volksmusikarchiv homepage of the Upper Bavaria district ; in PDF format; ongoing updates) with further information.
  12. ↑ a b It takes little to be happy. In: Deutschland-Lese. Retrieved September 14, 2020 .