ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author discusses the broad evolution of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach's handwriting with particular attention to the tremor that affected Bach from his thirtieth year onward. She submits several examples of her revised chronology and evaluates their ramifications for Nachlaβverzeichnis dating and the interpretation of Bach's unique style. A clear understanding of Bach's Schrift-Chronologie combines with new knowledge about watermarks and rastrology. In the 1740s intense levels of composition and revision are reflected in the hasty Gebrauchsschrift of many concerto, sonata, and chamber autographs. Approximately two hundred of Bach's works exist in autograph or partially autographic sources, and about fifty autographs bear dates in Bach's own hand. Meter signatures reflect modifications in Bach's numerical formations as observed in his correspondence and Rechnungsbuch entries. Aside from the definitive change in bass-clef formation after 1749, Bach's gout and tremor is the most critical factor for assessing Schriftentwicklung.
