Johann Caspar Bachofen

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Johann Caspar Bachofen (born December 26, 1695 in Zurich ; † June 23, 1755 there ) was a Swiss composer and music teacher.

Life

Bachofen, the son of a teacher, grew up in Zurich and studied Protestant theology (he was admitted to the ministry in 1719), but worked exclusively as a music teacher. As early as 1711 he was a member of the Collegium musicum "zum Chorherrensaal", the oldest of the private Zurich Collegia musica, which already existed around 1600. From 1715 he made music in the Collegium musicum "zur Deutschen Schule" (also called "zum Fraumünster "), which existed from 1679. From 1720 Bachofen officiated as cantor at the lower Latin schools at the Grossmünster and at the Fraumünster.

Bachofen published several collections of sacred songs and arias, some of which he composed himself. His musical Magnum opus followed in 1727 , the extensive collection of songs, Musical Hallelujah, or Beautiful and Spiritual Chants, accompanied by new and graceful melodies, and to encourage the praise of God at the printer Hans Heinrich Bürkli in Zurich. The collection mainly contains three-part sacred songs with basso continuo to accompany the organ . The melody of the song "Up, up, you Christians all" from the Evangelical Hymnal Regional Part Rhineland / Westphalia / Lippe No. 536 comes from Bachofen.

The musical Hallelujah was enormously popular beyond Zurich; the five other editions (1733, 1739, 1743, 1750, 1754) that appeared during Bachofen's lifetime were continuously increased by new songs. Even after his death, the collection continued to be printed; the 11th and final edition appeared in 1803.

From 1739 he was Kapellmeister of the college "zur deutschen Schule". In 1742 he succeeded Johann Caspar Albertins as cantor at the Grossmünster and at the same time headed the Collegium musicum “zum Chorherrensaal”.

Four years after Bachofen's death, the Passion oratorio JESUS ​​martyred and dying for the sin of the world , the so-called Brockes Passion , was published in 1759 . The text written by Barthold Heinrich Brockes in 1712 had previously been written by composers such as Reinhard Keizer (1712), Georg Friedrich Händel (1716), Georg Philipp Telemann (also 1716), Johann Mattheson (1718), Johann Friedrich Fasch (1723) and Gottfried Heinrich Stölzel (1725) was set to music.

Works

  • Musical Hallelujah, or beautiful and witty chants, accompanied with new and graceful melodies, and to encourage praise of God , Zurich 1727 (11th edition 1803)
  • Passion oratorio Jesus martyred and dying for the sin of the world , Zurich 1759 (posthumously), Verlag C. Hofius, Ammerbuch 2010

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ The third Collegium musicum in the city was the Collegium "from the music hall at the Kornhaus", which existed from 1613, cf. Urs Fischer: Johann Caspar Bachofen , online as http://www.zb.uzh.ch/presse/bilderpresse/jahrmusik/bachofen.pdf

Web links


personal data
SURNAME Bachofen, Johann Caspar
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss composer and music teacher
DATE OF BIRTH December 26, 1695
PLACE OF BIRTH Zurich
DATE OF DEATH June 23, 1755
Place of death Zurich