Johann Nikolaus Forkel, German musicologist and theorist (died 1818)

Johann Nikolaus Forkel was a German musicologist and music theorist, generally regarded as among the founders of modern musicology. His publications include the two-volume Allgemeine Geschichte der Musik, among the first attempts at a history of Western music and the "ground-breaking music bibliography" Allgemeine Litteratur der Musik. He also authored Johann Sebastian Bach: His Life, Art, and Work, the first substantial survey on the life and works of Johann Sebastian Bach.