Weissensee Friedrich

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Weissensee Friedrich

Weissensee, Friedrich, distinguished German composer; b. Schwerstedt, Thuringia, c. 1560; d. Alten-weddingen, near Magdeburg, 1622. He became Rektor of the grammar school in Gebesee, near Erfurt, in 1590, and about 1596 he was made Kantor at the grammar school in Magdeburg; in 1602 he became a clergyman in Altenweddingen. He was one of the finest German composers of Protestant church music of his era.

Works

(all publ. in Magdeburg): Evangelisch Sprüche auf die vornehmsten Fest-Tage for 5 Voices (1595); Hochzeit-Lied aus den Sprüchwörten Salomonis am 31. Capitel...dem...Peters Rathmann for 6 Voices (1599); Hochzeitlicher Ehren Dantz, auff das adelige Beylager des... Wolfgang Spitznasen zu Magdeburgk Domherrn for 6 Voices (1600); Opus melicum methodicum et plane novum, singulis diebus...et festis accomodatas for 4 to 10 and 12 Voices (1602); Geistliche Braut und Hochzeit Gesang, zu Ehren...Georgio Schultzen for 6 Voices (1611); Sponsis novellis for 8 Voices (1619); Geistlich Braut und Hochzeitliedt, ex Cant. Cant. Cantic. Cap. 5 und 7 ad 9 for 6 Voices (n.d.); various other works in contemporary collections.

Bibliography

B. Engelke, F. W. und sein Opus melicum (diss., Univ. of Kiel, 1927).

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire