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Scores of Lutheran musicians, building on the old traditions, regularly created new compositions for their congregations. New music for organ, choir, instruments, and the people fulfilled the new possibilities. The giants of the age were:
Their music, along with that of other gifted musicians, helped churches preserve the Gospel and give glory to God. Michael Praetorius (1571-1621) was one of the most unusual musicians
of the 17th Century. He composed hundreds of various kinds
of liturgical, Biblical, and chorale text
settings for small and large vocal and instrumental ensembles. He created
many splendid works for multiple choirs and positioned them in various
places about the church for a stereophonic performance effect. In addition,
he identified and organized musical knowledge in volumes that remain valuable
musicological references even today. Johann Hermann Schein, born in 1586 in Gruenhain, Germany, was one of the most important composers of the 17th Century. He served as a Lutheran cantor, composer and poet. He was most influential in incorporating the modern Italian developments of the concerto, operatic monody, and the expressive madigral into Lutheran church music practice. His chorale settings in cantional style formed the last great Lutheran collection of that type. Samuel Scheidt (1587-1654) wrote important works for organ, including contrapuntal chorale settings and liturgical pieces that feature alternation of voices and organ. He wrote polychoral motets on Biblical and chorale texts but he achieved his greatest fame as an organist, teacher and consultant. The Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648) had tragic consequences for him: his employment often was uncertain, and even worse, he lost all four of his children to the plague. Heinrich Schuetz, generally recognized as the most outstanding German composer of his age, was the first to achieve an international reputation. His historical position is based on an extraordinary musical ability that was nurtured by solid education and the generous support of patrons. Schuetz made great contributions, especially to the cause of Lutheran church music and its literature. He was a prolific composer of Biblical texts and festival settings, but his fame rests with his large output of sacred vocal music. The three Passion settings written in his old age are the devout, crowning achievement of his career.
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