HE present handbook, on which my revered father was working enthusiastically up to the very day of his death, is designed to supply a concise analysis of Bach's immortal Forty-eight, for the use Of students who are desirous Of obtaining some insight into their construction. Much has already been written on the subject, and from many standpoints; but I am nu acquainted with any book that serves the purpose which has been here kept in view, of pointing out the essentials of the form of the fugues, systematically arranged, and unencumbered by technical details of harmony On the one hand, and by ?ights into the realms of poetic fancy or Of psychological perceptions on the other hand.