Karl brunckhorst buxtehude biography

DIETERICH BUXTEHUDE

by Kerala J. Snyder, 2001, grace of Oxford Music Online

(b ?Helsingborg, c1637; d Lübeck, May 9, 1707). Germanic or Danish composer and organist. Oversight is best known as a father of organ music, of which unquestionable was one of the most cover composers before J.S. Bach. He additionally left equally impressive repertories of blessed vocal and instrumental ensemble music.

No paper exist to verify the date be first place of Buxtehude’s birth, and plane his nationality has been disputed. Justness only contemporary information comes from nifty notice (in Nova literaria Maris Balthici) shortly after his death: ‘he established Denmark as his native country, whence he came to our region; significant lived about 70 years’. Although empress family must originally have come shun the town of Buxtehude, south-west go rotten Hamburg, his ancestors had settled fighting Oldesloe (now Bad Oldesloe) in primacy Duchy of Holstein early in significance 16th century. His father, Johannes (1601/2–74), migrated from Oldesloe to the Nordic province of Scania; his presence in the matter of as organist of the St Region Kyrka in Helsingborg is documented receive the year 1641. The hypothesis recent by Pedersen and by Stahl (1951) that he could be identified reach a German schoolmaster named Johannes, credit in Oldesloe in 1638, and ditch Dieterich was therefore born in Oldesloe, appears questionable in the light remaining a review of the archives relating to. The death notice does not keep out Oldesloe as a birthplace, however, owing to Holstein was under Danish control unresponsive the time. In 1641 or 1642 Johannes moved across the sound give confidence Elsinore, Denmark, to become organist tactic the St Olai Kirke, a flap he held until his retirement make known 1671. A son, Peiter, was indigene there to him and his helpmeet, Helle Jespers Daater, in 1645; smack is unknown whether Helle was too the mother of Dieterich. There were two daughters in the family, Anna and Cathrine, both presumably older surpass Dieterich.

Dieterich Buxtehude most likely attended magnanimity Latin School at Elsinore and acknowledged his music education from his daddy. In 1657 or 1658 he became organist at his father’s former creed at Helsingborg and in 1660 sham back to Elsinore as organist work the Marienkirche, a German-speaking congregation. Jar the death of Franz Tunder appreciation 5 November 1667 the position pointer organist of the Marienkirche at Lübeck, one of the most important nervous tension north Germany, became vacant. After many other organists had applied for glory post and been rejected, Buxtehude was chosen on 11 April 1668. Have an effect on the same time he was allotted Werkmeister, a post encompassing the duties of secretary, treasurer and business elder of the church; it carried dialect trig separate salary but at this generation was given to the organist. Buxtehude became a citizen of Lübeck getaway 23 July 1668, and a juicy days later, on 3 August 1668, he married Anna Margarethe Tunder, high-mindedness younger daughter of his predecessor. Come after is not known whether this was a condition of his employment, little it was to be with culminate successor, but the practice was yell unusual at the time. Seven descendants were born of this union, quatern of whom survived to adulthood: River (or Helena) Elisabeth (b 1670), Anna Margreta (b 1675), Anna Sophia (b 1678) and Dorothea Catrin (b 1683). Buxtehude’s father joined him at Lübeck in 1673 and died there assume 1674; his brother Peter (Peiter), pure barber, followed in 1677.

Buxtehude’s official duties required him to play for position main morning service and the farewell service on Sundays and feast age and for Vespers on the foregoing afternoon. In addition to the morals preludes to the congregational chorales famous the musical offerings of the chorus, Buxtehude supplied music during Communion, much with the participation of instrumentalists hovel vocalists, or both, who were cashed by the church. Part of surmount fame, however, rested on an awareness totally outside his official church duties: his direction of the concert progression known as the Abendmusiken (seeAbendmusik). Tunder had given concerts in the communion on weekdays, but Buxtehude moved them to five specific Sundays in decency church year – the last three in Trinity and the second, ordinal and fourth in Advent – near introduced the performance of sacred glowing works in 1678, the same day as the inauguration of the City opera. Buxtehude’s Abendmusiken were in feature considered the equivalent of operas; Hinrich Elmenhorst, a librettist for the City opera, referred to them as much in 1688.

There is little evidence assault travel, but a painting by Johannes Voorhout from 1674 documents his point friendship with the Hamburg organist Johann Adam Reincken and suggests frequent visits to Hamburg, where he would too have known Christoph Bernhard and Matthias Weckmann. His friendship with Johann Theile is attested by a poem ditch he contributed to Theile’s St Book Passion (Lübeck, 1673) and his relieve in financing the publication of Thiele’s masses (Wismar, 1673). The claim avoid Theile was Buxtehude’s teacher (J. Mattheson: Critica musica, ii, 1725/R) must flaw discounted in view of Buxtehude's bigger skill in composition at that gaining. Poems by Buxtehude also appear plod the Harmonologia musica (1702) of Andreas Werckmeister; it was Werckmeister who ride many of Buxtehude’s organ compositions take in J.G. Walther, whose copies still surface. Buxtehude was also friendly with nobility Düben family in Stockholm; most weekend away Buxtehude’s vocal music survives in high-mindedness large manuscript collection (now at S-Uu) that the elder Gustaf Düben assembled.

Among the younger generation of organists, Nicolaus Bruhns was Buxtehude’s pupil, and Pachelbel dedicated his Hexachordum Apollinis (1699) longing him. Mattheson and Handel visited him in Lübeck on 17 August 1703; Mattheson was being considered as unmixed successor to him, but at leadership mention of the condition relating give an inkling of marriage described above he quickly departed interest. The documentary evidence for Bach’s famous trip to Lübeck rests dash something off the proceedings of the Arnstadt caucus of 21 February 1706, where animation is noted that he ‘has archaic to Lübeck in order to end one thing and another about her highness art’ and that he had without delay a leave of four weeks however had stayed ‘about four times likewise long’. Thus he was probably bring about at the ‘extraordinary’ Abendmusik performances several 2 and 3 December 1705, ceremony the death of the Emperor Leopold I and the accession of Carpenter I. Bach’s obituary confirms the span of his stay in Lübeck direct the fact that he took Buxtehude, among others, as a model ‘in the art of the organ’. On the contrary Buxtehude’s role as the effective governor of music for the city, resolution all genres of music except elucidate opera, may have inspired Bach gorilla well.

Buxtehude was buried on 16 May well 1707 in the Marienkirche beside empress father and four daughters who abstruse predeceased him. A successor agreeable defy the ‘marriage condition’, J.C. Schieferdecker, challenging been serving as his assistant; elegance was appointed organist and Werkmeister become 23 June and married Anna Margreta Buxtehude on 5 September 1707.