Examining the roots of the classical fugue and the early history of non-canonic fugal writing, Paul Walker's Fugue in the Sixteenth Century explores the three principal fugal genres of the period: motet, ricercar, and canonza. The volume treats each genre in turn, tracing the fugue's development throughout the century and highlighting important moments and trends along the way. Taking a two-tiered approach, Walker, on one level, examines fugue from the
perspective of contemporary musicians, and on another level, takes into account fugue's later history and the elements that came to play a significant role in its formation.
Walker is the first scholar to successfully tie together the various strands of the "pre-Bach fugue" thanks to the growing availability of editions of the repertories involved. He also takes account of recent work elucidating the change in compositional approach around 1500 from a basis in cantus firmus and canon to one favoring non-canonical, fugal imitation. Featuring well-chosen musical examples to illustrate the compositional developments of the sixteenth century, Fugue in the Sixteenth
Century is a definitive study for both specialist musicologists and organists and harpsichordists alike.
- ISBN10 0190056193
- ISBN13 9780190056193
- Publish Date 19 January 2021
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country US
- Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 288
- Language English