The Analysis and Composition of Polymorphic Canons

Abstract

Although theorists have examined various aspects of the canonic genre, scant attention has been given to the polymorphic canon, a designation which Prout bestowed on those pieces with multiple solutions. This article focuses on two prototypical examples, the anonymous Non nobis Domine and a seven-measure dux by G. H. Stölzel quoted in Marpurg’s Abhandlung, from whose analyses we may extract recurring melodic paradigms prior to providing practical guidelines for their composition.