Peer Review

Analysis of Bach's G minor fugue BWV861

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Content Quality:

Effectiveness:

Ease of Use:

Overview:: An interactive analysis of Bach's G minor fugue BWV861. It walks a user
through the fugue in short sections offering audio support and visual highlights
to show the formal structure. One can then hear and see the entire piece as a
whole.
Type of Material:: Interactive Shockwave movie.
Recommended Uses:: Analysis in music history classes and counterpoint classes.
Technical Requirements:: Up to date multimedia browser.
Identify Major Learning Goals:: Theoretical analysis of the structure of the fugue motivically and harmonically.
Target Student Population:: College music majors.
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:: Ability to read notation and recognize harmonic key areas. A basic overview of
fugue terminology is offered.

Rating:
Strengths:: Interactive control lets a users move at their own rate of understanding. The
use of motivic inversions at the beginning of the analysis is particularly
effective as is the highlighting of the augmentation used later in the analysis.
The larger structural picture is not lost in the detailed description.
Concerns:: Some graphic examples to support some of the glossary definitions might be
useful.

Rating:
Strengths:: The module works well in a stand alone context. It allows the user to pace
their way through the material.
Concerns:: There may need for some support for those students not yet equipped with the
jargon and harmonic analysis skills presented. The glossary definitions are
quite brief and lack supporting examples

Rating:
Strengths:: This interactive movie is a part of a much larger site dedicated to music
appreciation. Navigating this particular tool proves to be quite easy and
leaves the student free to move across the information without too much
restriction.
Concerns:: The fugue segments are always played with all the voices together. Although
this is useful in encouraging students to dig out the highlighted motives there
are some times when it might be useful to play only the voices being discussed
free of surrounding parts. An option to hear parts isolated might be a useful
feature.

Other Issues and Comments:: This unit is designed to give music students a graphic model of a fugue, provide definitions, and reinforce the terms with highlighted examples (visual and
audio).
A basic understanding of music theory including Roman numeral analysis and
modulatory techniques would be helpful, but not required.

This unit is also only a part of a much larger comprehensive site which can be
used to add contextual support.
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