University of South Carolina
School of Music

BAIN MUSC 726C
The Canons & Fugues of J.S. Bach

Summer 2025

MUSC 726C | Blackboard | Listening/Analysis

C O U R S E   M O D U L E S
1.
 Introduction
2. Counterpoint &
Harmony
3. Canon
Triangle icon Fugue


News

Activity #3: Fugue (Presentation Reflections) is due: Fri., July 11, 11:59 pm

Final Presentation (File Submission) is due: Fri., July 11, 11:59 pm


Quotable
Left quote
Bach is like an astronomer who, with the help of ciphers, finds the most wonderful stars....
 Right quote

 – Frédéric Chopin


Course Description

Analysis of the music of J.S. Bach with a focus on canon and fugue

Reference Text

Benjamin, Thomas. 2003. The Craft of Tonal Counterpoint, 2nd ed. New York: Routledge. {Full text: TCL}

Course Documents

  1. Syllabus (pdf)
  2. Listening/Analysis
  3. Reading
  4. Digital Anthology {DA}
  5. Terms & Concepts
  6. Handouts
  7. Bibliography

Topics

  1. Counterpoint & Harmony
  2. Canon
  3. Fugue
  4. Terms & Concepts
  5. Special Topics

Activities

  1. Activity #1 (Thurs., June 26): Bach and Friends (pdf) – Due: Fri., June 27, 11:59 PM
  2. Activity #2 (Thurs., July 3): Special Topics (pdf) – Due: Sat., July 5, 11:59 pm
  3. Activity #3 (Wed., July 9): Fugue (pdf) – Due: Fri., July 11, 11:59 pm

Projects
  1. Chorale Project (pdf) – Due: Fri., June 27, 11:59 pm
  2. Canon Project (pdf) – Due: Sat., July 5, 11:59 pm
  3. Fugue Presentation (pdf) – Due: Tues., July 8, in class

Analytical Resources

  1. CHORALES
  2. CANONS
  3. FUGUES

Online Media Resources
  1. Bruhn, J. S. Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier: In-depth Analysis and Interpretation {Edition Gorz}
  2. Byros, Poetry of Tone {YouTube Channel}
  3. Christiansen, "48 Jewels" {Earsense}
  4. Computational Analysis
  5. Dahn, The Four-Part Chorales of J.S. Bach {Bach-chorales.com} (Dahn 2019)
  6. Edwards, Puzzle Canon {Website; YouTube Channel} 
  7. Emmanuel Music
  8. Gran, Counterpoint Tutorials {YouTube Channel}
  9. Hofstadter
      • Game Thinking TV, How AI pioneer Doug Hofstadter wrote Gödel, Escher, Bach {YouTube}
      • See also: Mermikides, The Meta in Music (below)
  10. Hogan, The Nikil Hogan Show {YouTube Channel}
  11. Kerman, The Art of Fugue: Bach Fugues for Keyboard, 1715-1750 {Open JSTOR; Luminos} (Kerman 2015)
  12. Interlude
  13. Ishizaka
  14. Lawrence, Bach and Friends (Lawrence 2010)
  15. Parloff, Music@Menlo
  16. Malinowski, Music Animation Machine
  17. Marissen and Melamed,Texts and Historically-Informed Translations for the Music of Johann Sebastian Bach {Bachcantatatexts.org}
  18. Mermikides, Milt(on Mermikides) Online
  19. Netherlands Bach Society (NBS), All of Bach
  20. Prout, Books Ebenezer Prout
  21. Remeš, Go Figure! Thoroughbass & Composition {YouTube Channel}
  22. Rotem, Early Music Sources
  23. Smith, The Canons and Fugues of J.S. Bach {Internet Archive} (Smith 1996)
  24. Tefler, #BachUpsideDown: Bach’s Goldberg Variations in chromatic inversion, explained {DanTepfer.com}

Research Tools

  1. FindIt @ UofSC
  2. Dictionaries: Britannica Academic | Harvard Dictionary | Grove
  3. Articles: JSTOR
  4. E-books: Ebook Central | EBSCOhost | Hathi Trust
  5. Scores: CPDL; IMSLP; Alexander Street
  6. Recordings: Naxos | Spotify | YouTube
  7. Thomas Cooper Library

Archives, Catalogues, Editions and Sources

  1. Bach Archiv Leipzig {WP}
  2. Bach Digital {BD; WP}
  3. Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis (BWV) {WP}
  4. Collected Works

Journals

  1. Bach Journals
  2. College Music Symposium {CMS}
  3. Eighteenth-Century Music {Cambridge}
  4. Intégral {Rochester.edu}
  5. Journal of Music Theory {JMT; JSTOR}
  6. Journal of Music Theory Pedagogy {JMTP}
  7. Music Analysis {Wiley; JSTOR}
  8. Music Theory Online {MTO}
  9. Music Theory Spectrum {Oxford; JSTOR}

Bibliographies
  1. Dahn, Chorale Scholarship Bibliography
  2. Tomita, Bach Bibliography

Main References
See also: BAIN MUSC 726C Bibliography & Articles

Benjamin, Thomas. 2003. The Craft of Tonal Counterpoint, 2nd ed. New York: Routledge. {GB; TCL; Full text: EBSCOHost; Ebook Central}

Fux, Johann Joseph. 1965. Study of Counterpoint: From Johann Joseph Fux's 'Gradus Ad Parnassum'. Translated and edited by Alfred Mann. New York: Norton. {GB}

Gauldin, Robert. 2013/1995. A Practical Approach to 18th Century Counterpoint. Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press. {GB1; GB2}

____________. 2004. Harmonic Practice in Tonal Music. New York: Norton. {GB}

Kennan, Kent. 1998. Counterpoint, 4th ed. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. {GB}

Mann, Alfred. 1987/1958. The Study of Fugue. Mineola, NY: Dover. {GB}

Schubert, Peter and Christoph Neidhöfer. 2023/2006. Baroque Counterpoint. Expanded Edition. Buffalo, NY: State University of New York Press. {GB; 1/e: GB}

  LEGEND
BA - Britannica Academic; BD - Bach Digital; BCW - Bach Cantatas Website
BnF - Bibliothčque nationale de France; DA - Digital Anthology; EMS - Early Music Sources
GB - Google Books; Grove - Grove Music Online; HD - Harvard Dictionary of Music 
IA - Internet Archive; MTO - Music Theory Online; TCL - Thomas Cooper Library


Updated: July 10, 2025

Reginald Bain | University of South Carolina | School of Music
https://reginaldbain/vc/musc726c/