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The Art of Fugue or The Art of the Fugue (original German: Die Kunst der Fuge), BWV 1080, is an unfinished work by the German composer Johann Sebastian Bach. The work was probably started in 1742. Bach's first version, which contained 12 fugues and 2 canons was copied in 1745. This manuscript has a slightly different title, added afterwards by his son-in-law Altnickol: Die Kunst der Fuga. His second version was published after his death in 1750. It contains fourteen fugues and four canons. The piece demonstrates Bach's complete mastery of the most complex musical expression in European classical music known as counterpoint. The work consists of particularly elaborate and ingenious combinations of relatively simple themes to develop into compositions of highest musicality. Die Kunst der Fuge or (The Art of the Fugue) is considered to be among the pinnacles of European music due to its unique complexity of form and structure.