Today we will tell you who Johann Pachelbel is. The piano allows him to play his famous works, but this composer chose the organ as his main instrument.
The work of our hero is one of the peaks of the music of southern Germany during the Baroque period. The composer's contribution is most significant in the church sphere. Johann Pachelbel devoted most of his creative activity to such music. "Canon" is one of the most famous works of the composer.
Biography
The future musician was born in 1653. He was baptized. The exact date of his birth is unknown. Johann Pachelbel was born in Nuremberg. He was given the initial musical education by the cantor of the Church of St. Sebald, Heinrich Schwemer, and the organist Caspar Wecker.
At the age of 15, Johann became a student at Altdorf University. During his studies, he was an organist in the church. Soon, after studying for less than a year, the young man was forced to leave the university, and the reason for this was financial difficulties.
Later, our hero became a student at an institution called Gymnasium poeticum. The school's directorate was so impressed with the young man’s abilities that he allowed him to study music outside the walls of the gymnasium with Caspar Prenz. The latter was a student of Caspar Curl. In 1673, the musician took the place of the second organist of St. Stephen's Cathedral, which is located in Vienna. In 1677, our hero went to Eisenach. There he became a court organist of Johann Georg, who was the Duke of Saxe-Eisenach. Soon he met the Bach family.
Fame
In the 1930s, organ works created by Johann Pachelbel began to be performed regularly. In particular, “I am coming down from heaven to earth” is a
choral prelude, which is very popular today in Germany.
Creation
Our hero was accompanied by music all his life. Johann Pachelbel created more than 200 organ works. During the life of the composer, they were most famous. The musician is also the author of numerous spiritual secular works in various forms: these are variations and suites for harpsichord, concerts, motets, magnificates, vocal arias. Most chamber creations are written in the form of partitas.
In the music of our hero, the influence of South German as well as Italian composers is traced. He probably studied the works of Johann Caspar Curl. Its influence can be traced most clearly. Also, the musician took over the experience from Froberger and some French composers. Our hero was most interested in the variation form. The first work of the composer, which was published, is a collection of choral variations.
Pianoforte
Most of our hero’s organ church music is relatively simple. The pedals are not used in it. This is due in part to the Lutheran tradition. The singing of chorales was accompanied by the sound of home musical instruments. The works of our hero were often shifted in such a way that they could be performed without a special pedal keyboard. Johann Pachelbel, by his approach, greatly facilitated the task of the arrangers. Also, the simplicity of some works is explained by the corresponding quality of the organs that were available.
Some of the works are written using white menstrual notation. Such a system was widespread in the XV century. However, during the XVI-XVII century. it was gradually replaced by the classic five-line clock notation. The main body of the composer's organ works is liturgical works: about seventy choirs and preludes and over 95 pugs. Johann Pachelbel, as a rule, used 3 or 4 votes. The choral melody in his works is clearly distinguishable.
The composer introduced a new unusual musical form. She is a small choral fugue. Phrases melodies arise gradually.
In 1693, a collection was published, which consisted of eight choirs. The composer composed over 95 small fugues for magnificates. Usually, singing was accompanied by playing the organ or preceded by it. Thus the tone was set. The composer used the second option. At the same time, most of his fugues are based on original melodies. They are grouped according to 8 church frets.