Heinrich Scheidemann

Scheidemann was among the leading body organ composers of the first to mid seventeenth hundred years; as a creator from the north German body organ college, he was a significant forerunner of Buxtehude and Bach. From 1611 to 1614, Scheidemann researched in Amsterdam with Sweelinck. It isn’t very clear what he do through the ensuing decade, but probably as soon as 1625 he was offering as organist at St. Kathrinen in Hamburg. He continued to be in this placement until he passed away from the plague in 1663. Hamburg was a captivating musical town and would stay therefore at least through enough time of Telemann. Scheidemann taken care of good relations along with his co-workers in the town, made substantial cash as cathedral organist, and got his church’s device enlarged in the middle-1630s; this is about enough time he was creating a popularity as a specialist on organs themeselves, aswell as an capable composer, performer, and instructor. Scheidemann’s compositions circulated broadly; he wrote nearly specifically for the body organ, although he also created several harpsichord pieces and incredibly few tunes. His body organ functions combine Sweelinck’s desire for virtuoso figuration with an increase of traditional polyphony, all cautiously adapted towards the sources of the north German Baroque body organ. Sweelinck’s influence is usually most powerful in Scheidemann’s most adored functions, his chorale arrangments, using their moving, minimally embellished usage of the cantus firmus in a single part while more technical things continue around it. Scheidemann’s personal improvements included the monodic body organ chorale, that was essentially the body organ version from the single tune with continuo accompaniment, as well as the virtuosic chorale fantasia. A lot of Scheidemann’s chorale preludes possess such intensive fugues in the centre that they stage the best way to the prelude and fugue type that could reach its pinnacle in the functions of Bach. Scheidemann’s harpsichord music is commonly less innovative, even more beholden towards the florid variants of Sweelinck, although he also utilized even more homophonic dance forms that could characterize a lot of Bach’s harpsichord music.