Samuel Scheidt

Samuel Scheidt ( baptized November 4, 1587 in Halle ( Saale), † March 24, 1654 in Halle) was a German organist and composer.

Life

Scheidt in 1603 auxiliary organist at the Church of St. Maurice in Halle / Saale after his first artistic training. He was through patronage in the years 1607-1609 student of the famous Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck in Amsterdam.

After his return in 1609 he was appointed the administrator of the archbishopric of Magdeburg, Margrave Christian Wilhelm of Brandenburg, as court organist in Halle. There Scheidt 1614 to 1616 worked with Michael Praetorius, who was Kapellmeister of the house the following year at the court in Halle.

His knowledge of organ building, which must have made him famous soon led him to Eisleben in 1618 and 1619 along with Michael Praetorius, Heinrich Schütz and Johann Staden to a decrease organ to Bayreuth. The previously mentioned much alleged collaboration with Schütz and Praetorius in Magdeburg ( " establishment of a music concert ", etc.) based on an error of research.

1624 Scheidt wrote his Tabulatura nova. This collection of works for keyboard instruments (organ, clavichord ) represents the first key music - printing in Germany, where the score notation (combination of five lines systems) was applied.

Already in 1620 he had the great vocal collection of Cantiones sacrae published in the 1621 joined the Concertus sacri. This was followed in 1621, 1622, 1625 and 1627 the instrumental collections of so-called Ludi musici.

With 40 years of Scheidt married in 1627 Helena Magdalena Keller in the Church of St. Peter ( Wörmlitz ). With her he had seven children, of whom, after a plague epidemic in 1636, only two survived.

With the escape of his employer before Wallenstein's troops Scheidt was unemployed in 1628. Therefore we created in the same year specifically for him the post of musical director ( musical director) for the three major churches of the city hall ( Market Church of Our Lady, St. Mauritius ( Moritz Church ) and St. Ulrich).

As it is seen in the recent research, Scheidt probably lost more by the possible recatholicization in Halle by the well-known ( in the literature somewhat overvalued ) armed with high school principal Christian Gueintz in 1630 his position as music director of the city. Since then, Scheidt was again " mere Privatus " which earned with a number of students and opportunity scores his livelihood. Still, he could by 1631 four volumes publish with sacred concertos, but only reduced versions of polyphonic versions, had to remain whose pressure and which are missing. He expected, as is clear from the prefaces of the prints, with the usual in his time facilities for the respective performance conditions. In 1644 he was 70 Print symphonies that were thought of as modules of the spiritual concerts. 1650 was followed by his last work, the so-called Görlitz tablature with four-part chorales for practice.

Scheidt eventually lost due to the war his entire fortune and, after his death in a pauper's funeral.

He is one of the most important composers of the 17th century. His work is characterized by both quantitative and qualitative terms were significant contributions in vocal as well as instrumental total area much wider than that of his contemporaries Heinrich Schütz and Johann Hermann Schein. Many of his most poignant vocal works, especially the late clergyman concerts and the Lieblichen Kraftblümlein, are still largely unknown and unperformed.

Works (selection)

• Sacrae Cantiones (1620 )
• Tabulatura nova I -III ( 1624)
• Spiritual Concerts Part I ( 1631)
• Spiritual Concerts Part II (1634 )
• Spiritual Concerts Part III ( 1635)
• Lovely Kraftblümlein ( 1635)
• Spiritual Concerts Part IV (1640)
• LXX Symphonias ( 1644)
• Görlitz Tabulaturbuch (1650)

Literature (selection )

• Samuel Scheidt. A memorial volume to his 300th death anniversary on 24 March 1954. Published by the City Hall Council ( Saale), Department of Culture. German publishing house for music, Leipzig 1954; includes contributions by Walther Siegmund- Schultze ( Samuel Scheidt in our time ), Erich Neuss ( Where Samuel Scheidt in Hall lived ), Walther Serauky ( Samuel Scheidt and Heinrich Schütz in their musical interaction ), Werner Bachmann ( Samuel Scheidt and the folk song ) Two letters of Samuel Scheidt and Zeitttafel to Scheidt's life and work, as well as some full-page black and white illustrations.
• But Hendrik Horn: Article Scheidt ( family), in music, past and present, people part, Vol 14, Kassel 2005, Sp 1217 to 1249.
• Robert Eitner: Scheidt, Samuel. In: General German Biography (ADB ). Volume 30, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig, 1890, pp. 712-714.
• Erika Gessner: Samuel Scheidt's spiritual concerts. Berlin 1961.
• Klaus -Peter Koch ( eds.): Samuel Scheidt - Werke-Verzeichnis ( SSWV ). Wiesbaden 2000.
• Klaus -Peter Koch: Scheidt, Samuel. In: New German Biography ( NDB ). Volume 22, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 2005, ISBN 3-428-11203-2, pp. 634-636 ( digitized ).
• Christian Mahrenholz: Samuel Scheidt. Farnborough 1968 ( Ndr d ed Leipzig 1924).
• Walter Serauky: Samuel Scheidt in his letters. Hall, 1937.
• Wolfgang Proud: music architecture. Samuel Scheidt four Partes Ludorum musicorum. A study of early Baroque compositional practice. GK- Edition, Hamburg- Altona in 1987.
• Wolfgang Proud: To complete edition of the works of Samuel Scheidt. In: The Music Research 40 (1987 ), pp. 120-135.
• Wolfgang Proud: "Was Samuel Scheidt a musical reactionary? " in: Music and Church 52 (1982 ), pp. 113-126.
• Wolfgang Proud: The rate at Samuel Scheidt. Problems vocal additions. In: Samuel Scheidt (1587-1654) - Works and Impact. Report on the International Scientific Conference on 5 and 6 November 2004 under the Scheidt - giving ceremony in 2004 in the town hall and on the symposium in Creuzburg the 350th year of death, 25th - 27th March 2004. Halle 2006, pp. 69-93.