DIRECTORY 333
an innovative use of harmony, unparalleled
in Renaissance music, which won him
many admirers in later centuries.ORLANDO GIBBONS
1583–1625Orlando Gibbons came from a musical
English family. A celebrated keyboard
player, he was appointed organist
of London’s Chapel Royal at the
age of 21 and later became organist
at Westminster Abbey. His sacred
compositions included popular anthems,
such as “O clap your hands together”
for Church of England services. Among
his secular works, he won the greatest
fame for songs such as “The Silver Swan”
and “What Is Our Life” written in the
madrigal style of which he was a master.
His volume Parthenia with pieces for
the virginals (a smaller version of the
harpsichord) was the first collection of
keyboard music published in England.GIROLAMO FRESCOBALDI
1583–1643Born in Ferrara in northern Italy, Girolamo
Frescobaldi moved to Rome while still in
his teens and was appointed organist at
St. Peter’s Basilica in 1608. Apart from a
period as court organist to the Medici
rulers of Florence, he remained at
St. Peter’s for the rest of his life. His
music, mostly for organ, has a strongly
contemplative, mystical quality. Even
his toccatas (pieces written to allow
performers to show off their skills) are
remarkable, less for virtuoso display than
for dramatic intensity. One of his most
famous publications was Fiori musicali
(Musical Flowers, 1635), a collection of
organ pieces for church services.HEINRICH SCHÜTZ
1585–1672Widely credited as the greatest German
composer before J.S. Bach, Heinrich
Schütz was a major figure in introducing
the new styles of the Italian Baroque to
Germany. An early patron, Maurice of
Hesse-Kassel paid for him to study inVenice under Giovanni Gabrieli. In 1617,
following his return to Germany, he was
appointed kapellmeister at the court of
the electors (rulers) of Saxony in Dresden.
His settings of biblical and sacred texts
transformed Lutheran church music,
ranging from early psalm settings,
Psalmen Davids (1619), to the great
Christmas Oratorio (1664), and three
a cappella Passions (1665), dramatizing
the trial and death of Jesus.JOHANN HERMANN SCHEIN
1586–1630Alongside Schütz, Johann Hermann
Schein was a key figure in bringing
Italian Baroque influences into German
music. A native of Saxony, in 1616 he
was appointed to the prestigious post
of cantor at Leipzig’s Thomas Church.
An early publication, Banchetto
musicale (“Musical banquet,” 1617), was
one of his few instrumental collections.
His vocal music includes both secular
and sacred works. An outstanding work
is Israelsbrünnlein (“Fountains of Israel”)
(1623), a collection of 26 motets based on
Old Testament texts written in the style
of Italian madrigals.JOHANN JAKOB FROBERGER
1616–1667Born in Stuttgart, Johann Jakob
Froberger introduced Italian and French
keyboard styles into German music. He
studied in Rome with Frescobaldi before
being appointed organist at the court of
the Habsburg emperor in Vienna in 1641.
An organist as well as harpsichordist, he
was the first German composer to write
important works for the harpsichord.
Most influential were his dance suites,
with pieces drawing on French tradition
in which each movement is inspired by
a different dance form.BARBARA STROZZI
1619–1677The Venetian Barbara Strozzi was
known as a singer as well as composer.
Her mother was Isabella Garzoni, aservant to the wealthy dramatist and
poet Giulio Strozzi, who adopted Barbara
and may well have been her biological
father. Strozzi studied under the
composer Francesco Cavalli and was a
member of the Accademia degli Unisoni
(Academy of the Like-Minded), a group
of intellectuals founded by Giulio Strozzi.
She published eight volumes of music,
mostly arias and cantatas for solo voice.
Most are settings of poems dealing with
love and its pains, including the cantata
Lagrime mie (“My tears”) and the aria
“Che si può fare” (“What can I do”).MARC-ANTOINE CHARPENTIER
1643–1704From a family of painters, French
composer Marc-Antoine Charpentier
switched his allegiance to music after
being influenced by the composer
Giacomo Carissimi in Rome. On his
return to Paris, he held various posts,
including that of composer to Louis
XIV’s cousin, the Duchesse de Guise.
He worked with the dramatist Molière,
writing music for plays, including Le
Malade imaginaire (1673), and wrote a
successful opera, Médée (1693), based
on a play by Pierre Corneille. His best-
known sacred works are dramatic
motets (or short oratorios) written for
the Jesuit community. His reputation
suffered from comparisons with his
archrival Jean-Baptiste Lully until his work
was rediscovered in the 20th century.JOHANN CHRISTIAN BACH
1735–1782The youngest of J.S. Bach’s surviving
sons, Johann Christian Bach studied in
Berlin and Italy, where he was briefly
organist at Milan cathedral and had
his first opera, Artaserse, performed
in Naples. In 1762, he was appointed
composer at the King’s Theatre in
London, remaining in Britain for the rest
of his life. He became a dominant figure
in English musical life, partly through
the series of highly popular concerts
he organized each year with his
countryman Carl Friedrich Abel. Apart
from his operas, he was known for hisUS_332-339_Directory.indd 333 26/03/18 1:02 PM