Counterpoint

Hi guys... I have been told recently by a few people on this site that I need to learn counterpoint. I am pretty sure that I need to also. I think it will be pretty beneficial, probably madatory if I want to go into composition as a carreer...

Where can I get a free source on a guide to counterpoint? If it is a website... can I have the url please!!

(also on a side note... if I HAVE to get a priced book or something of the like... could it be not that expensive.)

Counterpoint is not something you'll find any decent source for on the internet. Counterpoint takes a long time to get your brain around (I'm still working on it) but it's a valuable, necessary skill as a composer.

The first thing I recommend you do is to learn all the Bach two-part inventions inside and out. They are all perfect little examples of what counterpoint is all about. Do you play piano? I hope so...if not then the best suggestion I can give is to get a score and a recording and listen to them till you're blue in the face.

Then after that, there are two angles from which you'll want to approach counterpoint. The first is the Renaissance counterpoint angle. There is a lot of good scholarship about there about how Renaissance counterpoint works. My favorite book is by Knud Jeppesen (do an amazon search, you'll find it). Some others will recommend Fux's book; I do not, but it's your call. The students at USC learn from a counterpoint textbook by Peter Schubert. This book breaks it down a lot more than any of the other books I've seen, and has lots of little exercises for you to do, so if you're all on your own without a teacher, this book (or something similar) may be the best idea. But it'll cost you at least $50 and maybe even more. Still, worth it.

The other angle from which you'll want to tackle counterpoint is the modern one. For this I recommend Walter Piston's book "Counterpoint"; it is very thorough and contains musical examples from Bach straight up through guys like Bartok. It has exercises, so it will also work for self-study, and I don't think this one will be too expensive.

These are my recommendations...I think you should at least glance at all the things that people recommend (hopefully will recommend) and make the decision for yourself.

There are at least three fantastic sites on counterpoint, but the best is Prof. Alan Belkin's. Search it in Google. His approach is the most modern one - which cannot be said about most textbooks.

There are at least three fantastic sites on counterpoint, but the best is Prof. Alan Belkin's. Search it in Google. His approach is the most modern one - which cannot be said about most textbooks.

I had the pleasure of doing both counterpoint and fugue with Alan Belkin, and he thoroughly understands the subject. He made what CAN be a very arid and boring subject absolutely thrilling. I went from revising strict species counterpoint through to fugue and contemporary counterpoint with him over a 3 year period, and it was the best 3 years I ever spent. The man KNOWS his fugues!

These are the books that I have learned counterpoint from:

Harold Owen, Modal and Tonal Counterpoint: From Josquin to Stravinsky

Peter Schubert, Modal Counterpoint, Renaissance Style

Although I do not know their price, I assume they are not so cheap.

But I found them very easy to understand and very helpful.

Here you are - The most valuable document on ctrpt. in the Net, by A. Belkin:

http://www.musique.umontreal.ca/personnel/Belkin/bk.C/index.html

Just an advise - pleeeeease learn to search the Net yourself. This is the largest treasure island ever to be found!

http://www.cygnetstudios.com/MP3s/FlutterbyButterfly.MP3

is this an example for counterpoint, or fugue ???

I can search the internet... I just wanted to know some credible sources from other members that those sites had proved useful.