Music analysis and the computer: developing a computer operating system to analyse music, using Johann Sebastian Bach's "well tempered clavier" book 51 to test the methodology

Abstract

"Most computerised and computer-aided musicological projects are written to achieve specific goals. Once achieved or not achieved as the case may be, the projects and their tools are frequently discarded because their dependency upon specific computer hardware and software prevents them from being utilised by other researchers for other projects. What is needed is a system that, using small tools to accomplish small tasks, can be expanded and customized to suit specific needs. This thesis proposes the creation of a music-analysis computer operating system that contains simple commands to perform simple musicological tasks such as the removal of repeated notes from a score or the audible rendition of a melodic line. The tools can be bolted together to form larger tools that perform larger tasks. New tools can be created and added to the operating system with relative ease, and these in turn can be bolted onto old tools. The thesis suggests a basic set of tools derived from old and new analytical methods, proposes a standard for their implementation based on the UNIX computer operating system, and discusses the benefits of using the system and its tools in an analysis of the twenty-four fugues of Johann Sebastian Bach from the "Well Tempered Clavier", Book II."