Dietrich Buxtehude is probably most familiar to modern
classical music audiences as the man who inspired the
young Johann Sebastian Bach to make a lengthy
pilgrimage to Lubeck, Buxtehude's place of employment
and residence for most of his life, just to hear
Buxtehude play the organ. But Buxtehude was a major
figure among German Baroque composers in his own right.
Though we do not have copies of much of the work that
most impressed his contemporaries, Buxtehude
nonetheless left behind a body of v...(+)
Dietrich Buxtehude is probably most familiar to modern
classical music audiences as the man who inspired the
young Johann Sebastian Bach to make a lengthy
pilgrimage to Lubeck, Buxtehude's place of employment
and residence for most of his life, just to hear
Buxtehude play the organ. But Buxtehude was a major
figure among German Baroque composers in his own right.
Though we do not have copies of much of the work that
most impressed his contemporaries, Buxtehude
nonetheless left behind a body of vocal and
instrumental music which is distinguished by its
contrapuntal skill, devotional atmosphere, and raw
intensity. He helped develop the form of the church
cantata, later perfected by Bach, and he was just as
famous a virtuoso on the organ.
He is thought to have been born with the name Diderich
Buxtehude. His parents were Johannes (Hans Jensen)
Buxtehude and Helle Jespersdatter. His father
originated from Oldesloe in the Duchy of Holstein,
which at that time was a part of the Danish realms in
Northern Germany. Scholars dispute both the year and
country of Dieterich's birth, although most now accept
that he was born in 1637 in Helsingborg, Skåne at the
time part of Denmark (but now part of Sweden). His
obituary stated that "he recognized Denmark as his
native country, whence he came to our region; he lived
about 70 years". Others, however, claim that he was
born at Oldesloe. Later in his life he Germanized his
name and began signing documents Dieterich
Buxtehude.
His musical career, and his autonomy was a model for
the careers of later Baroque masters such as George
Frideric Handel, Johann Mattheson, Georg Philipp
Telemann and Johann Sebastian Bach. In 1673 he
reorganized a series of evening musical performances,
initiated by Tunder, known as Abendmusik, which
attracted musicians from diverse places and remained a
feature of the church until 1810. In 1703, Handel and
Mattheson both traveled to meet Buxtehude, who was by
then elderly and ready to retire. He offered his
position in Lübeck to Handel and Mattheson but
stipulated that the organist who ascended to it must
marry his eldest daughter, Anna Margareta. Both Handel
and Mattheson turned the offer down and left the day
after their arrival. In 1705, J.S. Bach, then a young
man of twenty, walked from Arnstadt to Lübeck, a
distance of more than 400 kilometres (250 mi), and
stayed nearly three months to hear the Abendmusik, meet
the pre-eminent Lübeck organist, hear him play, and,
as Bach explained, "to comprehend one thing and another
about his art". In addition to his musical duties,
Buxtehude, like his predecessor Tunder, served as
church treasurer.
Although Buxtehude is famous above all for his organ
music and cantatas, his chamber music is virtually
unknown. In the mid-1690s, at the height of his fame,
Buxtehude published two collections in rapid
succession, each comprising seven sonatas for violin,
viola da gamba and basso continuo. It is the works of
the first collection (1694) – designated Opus 1 in
the print. These sonatas are characterised by
pronounced experimental features in both the scoring
and the handling of the instruments.
Source: Wikipedia
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dieterich_Buxtehude).
Although originally composed for Violin, Viola da Gamba
& Harpsichord, I created this Interpretation of the
Trio Sonata in C Major from 7 Trio Sonatas (BuxWV 256
Op. 1 No. 5) for Winds (Flute, Oboe & Bassoon) and
Strings (2 Violins, Viola & Cello).
