Notes by Nathan Baker on examples from Niedt, Book II: Manual of Instructions for Variation

The musical examples do much to speak for themselves, and with these chapter summaries should
prove enlightening even without the full translation of Niedt’s actual text (which I really SHOULD finish).

Ch. 2: Niedt provides examples of how to vary different intervals in the bass, ending with a
demonstration of an embellished ascending pentachord and cadential bass variations on the sol.

Ch. 3: Niedt takes a single structural bass line and demonstrates different ways to embellish it using
various patterns from the previous chapter.

Ch. 4: More variations of the preceding bass line.

Ch. 5: Yet more variations of the bass line arising from the previous ones.

Ch. 6: Variations for the right hand above the previous bass line.

Ch. 7: Given the initial structural pattern, possible variations are demonstrated.

Ch. 8: The complete realization of a bass line using patterns from the previous chapter (in Niedt’s
treatise, the unadorned figured bass is provided first, followed by the gradual realization of each
segment, resulting in the finished example I have provided).

Ch. 9: More demonstrations of realizing several figured basses.

Ch. 10: No musical examples—various musical genres and terms are defined.

Ch. 11: A bass line that will be realized in different styles/forms

Ch. 12: Preceding bass line realized as: prelude, chaconne, finale, allemande, courante, double,
sarabande, menuet, and gigue.