Who wrote the first music history textbook in 17761 min read

Reading Time: < 1 minutes

The first music history textbook was written by Johann Nikolaus Forkel in 1776. Forkel was a musicologist and organist who became well-known for his work on the life and music of Johann Sebastian Bach. In 1802, he published the first edition of his book, Ueber Johann Sebastian Bachs Leben, Werke und Kunst, which is considered to be the first music history textbook.

Forkel’s book covers the history of Western music from the ancient Greeks to the present day. It includes biographies of many of the most famous composers, as well as descriptions of their works. Forkel’s book was highly influential and was used as a textbook for many music students in the nineteenth century. It is still considered to be one of the most important sources of information on the history of Western music.