This Week in Classical Music: January 15, 2024. Schein and much more. Several composers were born this week: Niccolò Piccinni (b. 1/16/1728), a nearly forgotten Italian composer who was famous in his day for his Neapolitan opera buffa; Cesar Cui (b. 1/18/1835), a Russian composer of French descent (his father entered Russia with Napoleon) and a member of the Mighty Five; Emmanuel Chabrier (b. 1/18/1841), a mostly self-taught French composer, whose España is his best-known symphonic work but who also wrote some very nice songs; Ernest Chausson (b. 1/20/1855), another Frenchman, who wrote the Poème for the violin and orchestra which entered the repertoire of all virtuoso violinists; Walter Piston (b. 1/20/1894), a prolific and prominent American composer of the 20th century who often used Schoenberg’s 12-note method; Alexander Tcherepnin (b. 1/20/1899), a Russian composer who was born into a prominent musical family (his father, Nikolai Tcherepnin was a noted composer and cultural figure), left Russia after the 1917 Revolution, settled in France, moved to the US after WII and had several symphonies premiered by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra; and, finally, another Frenchman, Henri Duparc (b. 1/21/1848), best known for his art songs.None of these composers were what is usually called “great” but all were talented and some of their works are very interesting.Listen, for example, to Alexander Tcherepnin’s 10 Bagatelles, op. 5 in a version for piano and orchestra (here).Margrit Weber is at the piano, Ferenc Fricsay conducts the Radio-Symphonie-Orchester Berlin.Or, in a very different way, here’s Duparc’s fine song, L'invitation au Voyage.Jessye Norman is accompanied by Dalton Baldwin.
One composer, also born this week, interests us more than all the above, even though his name is almost forgotten- Johann Hermann Schein.Schein, a good friend of the better-known Heinrich Schütz, was one of the most important German composers of the pre-Bach era.He was born on January 20th of 1586 (99 years before Bach) in Grünhain, a small town in Saxony.As a boy, he moved to Dresden where he joined the Elector’s boys’ choir; there he also received thorough music instruction.In his twenties, on the elector’s scholarship, he studied law and liberal arts at the University of Leipzig.He published his first collection of madrigals and dances, titled Venus Kräntzlein, in 1609.Starting in 1613 he occupied several kapellmeister positions, starting in smaller cities, till 1616, when he was called to Leipzig.He passed the audition and was accepted as the Thomaskantor, the most senior position in the city and the one Bach would assume 107 years later.Like Bach a century later, he was responsible for the music at two main churches, Thomaskirche and the Nicolaikirche, and for teaching students at the Thomasschule.Schein held the position of Thomaskantor for the rest of his life, which, unfortunately, was short: in his later years, he suffered from tuberculosis and other maladies and died at the age of 44 (Heinrich Schütz visited him on his deathbed).
Here's Schein’s motet, Drei schöne Ding sind (Three beautiful things), performed by the Ensemble Vocal Européen under the direction of Philippe Herreweghe.And here’s another motet, Ist nicht Ephraim mein teurer Sohn (Isn't Ephraim my dear son?), performed by the same musicians.
Schein and many other, 2024
This Week in Classical Music: January 15, 2024. Schein and much more. Several composers were born this week: Niccolò Piccinni (b. 1/16/1728), a nearly forgotten Italian composer who was famous in his day for his Neapolitan opera buffa; Cesar Cui (b. 1/18/1835), a Russian.jpg "Johann Hermann Schein, 1620")
composer of French descent (his father entered Russia with Napoleon) and a member of the Mighty Five; Emmanuel Chabrier (b. 1/18/1841), a mostly self-taught French composer, whose España is his best-known symphonic work but who also wrote some very nice songs; Ernest Chausson (b. 1/20/1855), another Frenchman, who wrote the Poème for the violin and orchestra which entered the repertoire of all virtuoso violinists; Walter Piston (b. 1/20/1894), a prolific and prominent American composer of the 20th century who often used Schoenberg’s 12-note method; Alexander Tcherepnin (b. 1/20/1899), a Russian composer who was born into a prominent musical family (his father, Nikolai Tcherepnin was a noted composer and cultural figure), left Russia after the 1917 Revolution, settled in France, moved to the US after WII and had several symphonies premiered by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra; and, finally, another Frenchman, Henri Duparc (b. 1/21/1848), best known for his art songs. None of these composers were what is usually called “great” but all were talented and some of their works are very interesting. Listen, for example, to Alexander Tcherepnin’s 10 Bagatelles, op. 5 in a version for piano and orchestra (here). Margrit Weber is at the piano, Ferenc Fricsay conducts the Radio-Symphonie-Orchester Berlin. Or, in a very different way, here’s Duparc’s fine song, L'invitation au Voyage. Jessye Norman is accompanied by Dalton Baldwin.
One composer, also born this week, interests us more than all the above, even though his name is almost forgotten- Johann Hermann Schein. Schein, a good friend of the better-known Heinrich Schütz, was one of the most important German composers of the pre-Bach era. He was born on January 20th of 1586 (99 years before Bach) in Grünhain, a small town in Saxony. As a boy, he moved to Dresden where he joined the Elector’s boys’ choir; there he also received thorough music instruction. In his twenties, on the elector’s scholarship, he studied law and liberal arts at the University of Leipzig. He published his first collection of madrigals and dances, titled Venus Kräntzlein, in 1609. Starting in 1613 he occupied several kapellmeister positions, starting in smaller cities, till 1616, when he was called to Leipzig. He passed the audition and was accepted as the Thomaskantor, the most senior position in the city and the one Bach would assume 107 years later. Like Bach a century later, he was responsible for the music at two main churches, Thomaskirche and the Nicolaikirche, and for teaching students at the Thomasschule. Schein held the position of Thomaskantor for the rest of his life, which, unfortunately, was short: in his later years, he suffered from tuberculosis and other maladies and died at the age of 44 (Heinrich Schütz visited him on his deathbed).
Here's Schein’s motet, Drei schöne Ding sind (Three beautiful things), performed by the Ensemble Vocal Européen under the direction of Philippe Herreweghe. And here’s another motet, Ist nicht Ephraim mein teurer Sohn (Isn't Ephraim my dear son?), performed by the same musicians.