Nathanael Schnittelbach

Nathanael Schnittelbach (born June 16, 1633 in Danzig ; † November 16, 1667 in Lübeck ) was a German composer and violinist .

Life

Schnittelbach's father, Johann Schnittelbach, was the organist at St. Jacobi in Gdansk for 45 years. After completing his training, Nathanael Schnittelbach found his first job in 1650 as a temporary violinist at the Marienkirche in Gdańsk . In 1653 he became a musician at the court orchestra of Christina of Sweden . After unsuccessfully applying to Danzig, he returned to Germany in the spring of 1655 and became a council musician in Lübeck. There he took lessons from Nicolaus Bleyer until his death in 1658 . On November 13 of the same year he was granted citizenship; on December 11th he married Bleyer's daughter, Anna. In October 1667, Schnittelbach fell ill on a concert tour during a princely wedding on Gottorf and died a month later.

Schnittelbach enjoyed an extraordinarily good reputation as a violinist. He was known throughout Germany and beyond in Poland, Denmark, Holland and Sweden; Ernst Ludwig Gerber called him “one of the greatest violinists of the 17th century”. Schnittelbach's most famous student was Nicolaus Adam Strungk .

Works

A Ciacona for solo violin, two instrumental suites and a sonata for violin and figured bass have come down to us by Schnittelbach. The two sets of suites are typical of the council music of the time. A Magnificat for five voices and two violins as well as a spiritual concert Where the Lord does not build the house are lost.