Nicolaus Bruhns

Nicolaus Bruhns , also Nikolaus Bruhns . sometimes Nicolaus Bruhn or Nicolaus Bruns (* December 1665 in Schwabstedt ; † March 29th ^July / April 8th  1697 ^greg. in Husum ) was a German-Danish composer of the North German organ school and an organ and violin virtuoso . His traditional work comprises four complete organ works and twelve sacred cantatas and contains some exceptionally original pieces.

Family tree of the Bruhns family of musicians

Life

Bruhns came from a family of musicians in Schleswig-Holstein . His grandfather Paul was a lutenist and music master in the chapel of the Gottorf Duke Friedrich III. Nicolaus' uncle Friedrich Nicolaus Bruhns was director of the Hamburg council music. Nicolaus' father Paul - possibly a student of Franz Tunder  - was an organist in Schwabstedt , where he married the daughter of his predecessor.

The career of Nicolaus Bruhns has only been handed down in fragments.

Lübeck and Copenhagen

Nicolaus probably received his first lessons from his father. As Ernst Ludwig Gerber later wrote in his lexicon of the Tonkünstler , he had already mastered the organ at an early age and made “good” compositions for piano and voice. Musical impressions from neighboring Husum , probably the richest town on the North Frisian coast, probably also had an effect on him. Nicolaus showed enough talent to learn the violin and viol from his uncle Peter, council musician in Lübeck , on the advice of his father at the age of 16 . On these instruments he acquired "such a skill that anyone who only heard and got to know him had to admire and appreciate him" (Gerber). Bruhns was the youngest representative of all Lübeck violinists - whose craftsmanship was admired at home and abroad. He was also Dietrich Buxtehude's favorite student , with whom he studied composition and perfected his organ playing. According to Mattheson's music dictionary, Buxtehude was Bruhns' greatest role model.

After Bruhns traveled around the surrounding region for some time, thanks to one of the organist of the Copenhagen Nicolaikirche, Johann Lorenz d. J., directed a letter of recommendation from Buxtehude, a position as composer and violinist at the court there - such trips to the northern countries occurred frequently among Lübeck musicians. His later brother-in-law Johann Hermann Hesse, who had connections in Copenhagen, helped him on this trip. Bruhns stayed in Copenhagen for a few years; the exact circumstances of his stay are unknown. Bruhns was not a civil servant, but it is certain that he was Lorenz's deputy organist. He probably appeared as an organ and violin virtuoso in his famous evening concerts and at the royal court.

The administrative minutes of the archive of the state capital Kiel provide new information about the period of time during which Bruhns is suspected to be in Copenhagen . According to this, Bruhns may have been active as a musician in the Copenhagen area around 1683/84. A stay of several years is not an option. From 1684 the city council of Kiel advertised the young organist and composer with knowledge or even on behalf of Duke Christian Albrecht of Schleswig-Holstein-Gottorf, who was living in exile in Hamburg . He was offered an apartment and financial security, city officials met Bruhns several times and paid him 2,400 Rthlr, among other things. Litigation costs for his trial in Copenhagen. City representatives traveled to Copenhagen and there acquired a "found paper" apparently related to Bruhns. Bruhns was apparently arrested between March and September 1685. In January 1687, the protocols report an unsuccessful attempt to free Bruhns from arrest. In addition to the Kiel people, high-ranking personalities from the government and the military take part. Bruhns, referred to as a "passenger", slept between Lübeck and Laboe , his ankle was slightly deformed, and the costs of detention were higher than the earnings of his work. Apparently his patrons tried again in 1688 for a release. In the final phase of the negotiations on the Altona contract at the beginning of 1689, the demand for a successful conclusion of the long courtship for Nicolaus Bruhns grew in Kiel.

Husum

After the death of the old organist Friedrich zur Linden of the - no longer existing - Husum town church in January 1689, the city council wanted to offer this position to Bruhns, who had already achieved a certain fame. Since it was not known where he was, the post was only temporarily filled and the city fathers tried to locate Bruhns. This was done in a hurry - a courier was even on the way to Schwabstedt at night to get his father or brother's address. Other, competing cities may be interested in the talented musician. After an audition on March 29th in Husum, it was finally accepted unanimously, "as no one else had been heard of any kind of composition and traction in this town before." When he was appointed organist, Bruhns married Anna Dorothea Hesse, his aunt's stepsister.

Due to his material and ideal achievements as well as a promise made by Bruhns, the City Council of Kiel considered itself entitled to engage him as organist in Kiel. Three months after his appointment in Husum, the Kiel city council offered him a position as the successor to the then organist of the St. Nicholas Church, Claus Dengel, which led to a heated dispute between the two cities. Bruhns, intimidated by an intrigue fueled by Kiel "with certain pretexts" from the point of view of the Husum Council, traveled there on July 22nd of that year and on June 29th, 1689 promised to take up his office in three weeks. After the city of Husum, who felt that their honor had been hurt, had promised Bruhns, as the only organist, an increase in the salary paid out by 100 to 500 thalers a year, he stayed in Husum. However, the Husum council had to pay a “consented contribution” [consensual contribution, subsidy] of 2500 Reichsthalers, the equivalent of 7500 Marks Lübsch, to the Gottorfer Herzog, who was reinstated in his rights.
With the change of the Husum deputies in 1691, Bruhns was refused the extraordinary salary increase against the will of the city council. He filed a lawsuit with the Gottorper duke, which he won. In his letter to the Duke, the Husum council indicated that Bruhns urgently needed the money.

In addition to the organ restored by Gottfried Fritsch in 1629, Bruhns also used the church's vocal choir. For two years he worked with the local cantor Georg Ferber, who was known for his exceptional bass voice and was eventually replaced by Petrus Steinbrecher. The town musician Heinrich Pape took over the management of the instrumental ensemble.

Receipt from Georg Bruhns, Nicolaus' brother

Bruhns stayed in Husum until his untimely death at the age of 31. On April 2nd, 1697 he was buried, "everyone regrets that such an excellent master in his profession, even a contractual man, should not have lived any longer". According to the city's church archives, Bruhns died of " consumption ".

Bruhns had five children, two girls died in infancy. He left three children who were taken into paternal care by his brother-in-law. His only son Johannes Paulus studied theology and was most recently pastor at the monastery church in Preetz . One of his descendants is Matthäus Friedrich Chemnitz , the poet of the Schleswig-Holstein song . Nicolaus had a brother, Georg, who took over his office in Husum. However, neither compositions nor references to a historical aftermath are known, so that with Nicolaus, the history of the Bruhns family of musicians also died out.

Playing technique

Bruhns was known far beyond the city limits of Husum as an organ and violin virtuoso. As Mattheson reports, now and then he played the violin and the pedal with the pedal at the same time . Gerber reported in 1790/1792 that he even sang during this time, so that his playing sounded like several people were playing. It is possible that Bruhns performed his cantata My Heart Is Ready in this way.

Bruhns is said to have had a playing technique on the violin that allowed him to play sustained four-part chords. Albert Schweitzer , in his monograph on Johann Sebastian Bach, cites Bruhn's review of Bach's solo violin sonatas as evidence that in the period before and up to Bach playing the violin with several voices was possible and customary without the interval splits or arpeggiation that are common today has been.

The surviving work does not allow any conclusions to be drawn about Gerber's skill in playing the viol, but there may be indications of this in Buxtehude's compositions: Buxtehude probably wrote his cantata Jubilate Domino for alto and obbligato viol for Bruhns and saw him as a viol soloist in the cantata Gen. Sky ahead. If this is true, the virtuoso runs of the viol parts would prove that the viol was not just a secondary instrument for Bruhns.

plant

Due to his early death, only four complete organ works and twelve sacred cantatas have come down to us. He also wrote chamber music, which is lost.

Geck characterized Bruhns as a composer “with the passion of an artist who does not stand above his work but is absorbed in it” . Bruhns' compositions are largely determined by their desired emotional impact, which predominates over formal aspects.

Organ work

Manuscript of the little prelude in E minor ( tablature )

In Quantz's attempt at an instruction ... Bruhns was ranked among the best composers of organ works of his time. Three preludes and a fantasy about the chorale Nun komm der Heiden Heiland are certainly from Bruhns.

The organ works show typical characteristics of the north German organ style : contrast of homophonic and fugal sections, arpeggii and virtuoso pedal passages with trills . The bold harmonies and intricate rhythms are striking . Bruhns exhausted all the freedom of the Stylus Phantasticus in order to create compositions that were full of emotions, sometimes bitter and almost “modern”. Since the fast runs of the preludes require clear and precise rhythms - sometimes using the double pedal - they place high demands on the performer.

“Big” Prelude in E minor : sheet music and audio files in the International Music Score Library Project

Audio sample: "Great" Prelude in E minor

This prelude is undoubtedly Bruhns' most idiosyncratic organ work. It consists of two mutually independent joints with respective preludes, interludes and aftermaths, in which free sections are interspersed. With its enormous diversity, it takes the “fantastic style” to the extreme. Apel compared the piece - possibly based on a characterization of the Stylus Phantasticus in Mattheson's work The Perfect Capellmeister  - with a "magical theater in which every moment new people appear, move across the stage and disappear again" .

The free introduction consists of a chromaticism that is interwoven with the shorter tone sequences illustrated in the later first fugue theme. The fugue begins with a chromatic sequence of notes, which is followed by the main theme accompanied by the use of the second voice:

The joint passes into a section in the 12/8 by means of a free transfer clock over. This is followed by an unexpected arpeggio passage. In the ostinato that follows , manual and pedal alternate. Finally, the second fugue begins with its syncopated main theme:

The in ²⁴ / ₁₆ Trailer held -Stroke is of complex structure and ends with a connector constructed in E chord.

“Small” Prelude in E minor : sheet music and audio files in the International Music Score Library Project

The “small” E minor Prelude is not as extensive as the larger one, but it is just as fragmented in structure. The introduction, which consists of a rapid pedal sequence with point-by-point accompaniment by the manual, is followed by a long echo section. This is followed by a cheerful fugato . The next section in Allegro is followed by a few arpeggio bars that lead to the final section.

Prelude in G major

This work is formally structured in a similar way to many other North German tokkats. It consists of a prelude, a fugue with a repcussion theme, an interlude, a fugue about the three-bar variant of the theme and an aftermath. In contrast to the two E minor preludes, this is a piece that, despite seemingly different sections, has internal coherence and is a testament to its careful structure.

After a tokkata and a few introductory bars, the first fugue begins, the theme of which, similar to Buxtehude, contains repeated notes. Four more voices enter in quick succession. Some passages use the double pedal and are therefore six-part; the differences in the pitch of the two pedal voices reach up to two octaves. The second fugue, which is also five-part, follows an interlude. A virtuoso pedal play finally introduces the dramatic aftermath.

Choral Fantasy: Now come the Gentile Savior

The song Nun komm der Heiden Heiland is Luther's German translation of the medieval hymn Veni redemptor gentium and was published in Erfurt in the first Lutheran hymn book from 1524 . Bruhns' melody initially appears in the tenor:

One after the other, the alto and finally the pedal take over this melody. Over time, new figures and melody fragments with echo passages and insertions in the style of the partita are added. The richness of sound ends with a sudden interruption and finally flows into a uniformly flowing last section that ends in a relatively unspectacular manner.

Vocal work

Bruhns' vocal works can be roughly divided into three categories. Part of this is made up of the well-composed concertos, which consist only of a coherent piece and which take over the texts of the writings unchanged.
The other large part is made up of the numbered concertos, which - like the cantata in the narrower sense - consist of several movements and paraphrase the original texts . They use all techniques that are also used in opera , such as ritornelles , arias , duos , trios and choirs .
Finally, as a Lutheran is still hymn designed Choralkantate handed.

Bruhns combined stylistic elements of two opposing musical genres, namely the sacred concert shaped by Schütz and the madrigal, which until then was largely reserved for secular music . Just like the compositions for organ, the vocal works testify to a great feeling for the affect effect.

Some of the works require more instrumental, others more vocal sovereignty. There are also fugal sections that combine instrumental and vocal parts, for example in the cantata Jauchzet dem Herren . This suggests that Bruhns viewed voices and instruments largely as a unit. The instrumentation , however, is quite limited, which is probably due to the fact that Bruhns was not given the opportunity to train in this regard.

The original titles of the vocal works - such as "Madrigal" ( Stop your tears ) or "Canzon spirituale" ( O dear holy spirit ) - have only survived in isolated cases . Today they are commonly summarized under the term “cantatas”. Dating is only possible roughly and sporadically. The order of the works explained in more detail below follows the complete edition.

Thoroughly composed concerts

The time to say goodbye is here

Four-part choir (soprano, alto, tenor, bass), string instruments, figured bass
Text: 2. Timothy , chapter 4, verses 6–8

This work is still largely in the tradition of the concert motet: every idea in the text is implemented independently in terms of motifs . The work is divided into five literary sections, which are summarized in three musical movements. The five-part structure is reminiscent of tunder , but appears more homogeneous because of the more balanced sections.

Beginning of The time of my farewell is available , a copy of the score by Georg Austria

The piece begins with a four-part fugue in D major, which consists of the theme The time of my farewell is present and a counter-theme about I have a good fight and a harmonic sequence about fought . The main idea of ​​the second section of text ( I have completed the run ), the "run" , is emphasized by accentuations of the vowel, accompanied by an echo of the stringed instruments. The central section is determined by the gradual chromatic exaltation from henceforth , as well as a harmonic conclusion above justice . The last section ( not for me alone ) begins with soprano and alto, which are reinforced by tenor and bass.

The Lord has prepared his seat in heaven

Bass, two violins, two viols, violin or bassoon, figured bass
Text: 103rd Psalm , verses 19–22

In terms of the voice guidance, this A major cantata is structured like a three-part concertato and contains numerous fugal sections. The first section of the text is opened by the solo bass to which the five-part instrumental ensemble answers. Verses 20 and 21/22 form the core of the work. A broad Allelujah fugue closes the work, in which Bruhns attaches more importance to a mathematically precise formal structure than to a faithful musical implementation of the text material.

Shout out to the Lord, all the world

Tenor, two violins and figured bass
Text: 100th Psalm

This cantata is divided into three large parts. The first strings recitatives and ariosos , which, because of their fast tone sequences, place high demands on the tenor. The second ( Goes to his gates ) contains a four-part fugue that includes all instruments in addition to the singer. The third part is similar to the first.

De profundis

Bass, 2 violins and figured bass
Text: 130th Psalm , verses 1–8

This bass solo cantata , possibly also the two virtuoso pieces The Lord Has Prepared His Chair in Heaven and The Time of My Farewell Is Available , Bruhns in Husum could have written for Ferber. It is one of the two traditional compositions in Latin. The bass part has its counterpart in the few instruments that temporarily come to the fore.

The piece begins with a melancholy symphonia . The depth is symbolized by a chromatic descent in Fiant aures tuae intendentes . The central part depicts the doubting believer with a hesitant alternation between slow recitatives and faster ariosos. A seemingly cheerful acceleration of the tempo in et ipse redimet puts aside any doubt and finally leads to a jubilant amen .

My heart is ready

Bass and obbligato violin
Text: 57th Psalm, verses 8–12

This composition is the one that gives an insight into Bruhns' playing technique. In the prelude in particular, virtuoso violin playing, in which two or three strings often sound at the same time, is used as an effect. The text is the German translation of Paratum cor meum . The cantata consists of five sections and is of complex structure. The naive and cheerful mood is achieved through numerous figures , such as the melody Wake Up, My Honor and the change between voice and instruments.

Number concerts

Happy those who fear the Lord

2 sopranos, bass, strings and figured bass
Text: 128. Psalm, verses 1-6

This cantata consists of four movements. The concertante-style introduction is followed by the second movement ( your wife will be ), which is reserved exclusively for the sopranos. The third movement ( see, so the man is blessed ) is determined accordingly by the bass. Finally, the fourth and last movement ( The Lord will bless you from Zion ) consists of alternating voices.

Paratum cor meum

Two tenors, bass, violin, two viols, figured bass
Text: Psalm 57, verses 8–12 (Latin version)

This concert consists of an opening allelujah and three movements. The first (verses 8–9) and last (verse 12) movements are three-part with an instrumental ensemble. The solo middle section, based on the other verses, consists of a recitative and arioso for the first tenor and two ariosos for the second tenor.

I lie and sleep

Four-part choir (soprano, alto, tenor, bass), four individual parts, strings, figured bass
Text of the opening and closing movements: 4th Psalm, verse 9; Middle movement: Praise to God, I did mine (Georg Werner)

According to the text, the cantata is in the “tragic” key of C minor . A string symphony precedes the entry of the voices. The second movement is a solo aria for soprano. The tenor alto duo In Jesu Namen joins an instrumental ritornello . A second ritornello is followed by a solo aria for bass in the Buxtehude tradition.

The poignant musical implementation of the reflections on death, described by some authors as “mystical”, makes the very special quality of this cantata.

The cornerstone of this piece is also passed down as a parody with the text I have a desire to separate (after Phil. I, 23) .

Doesn't have to be human

Four-part choir (soprano, alto, tenor, bass), four individual parts, strings, two clarini , basso continuo
Text: Paraphrase of Job VII, Chapter I, 1

This cantata is probably a youth work that was written under the supervision of Buxtehude, in which Bruhns tried to imitate the style of the “great evening music ” of his teacher. It begins with an overture in which clarini, strings and clarini follow one another. This is followed by three stanzas, all of which end with a choir on the fugitive theme Da There is already on all sides . The second part of the cantata consists of one stanza each for bass and tenor and finally leads to the final stanza about triumph, the battle is fought .

Parallels between this madrigal and Buxtehude's evening music “The Last Judgment” , BuxWV 129, indicate that Bruhns played a lively role in the creation of the latter ( Lit .: Kölsch 1957, p. 22).

O dear holy spirit

Four-part choir (soprano, alto, tenor, bass), four individual parts, two clarini, strings and figured bass
Text: Paraphrase of the Luther chant Come holy spirit

The text and mature style of this four-movement cantata suggest that it was written in 1691 for the inauguration of a preacher. The first movement consists of a ritornello in C major, followed by a refrain on Sinful Weakness , which in turn ends with a ritornello. The following three movements consist of the soloists' interventions, which are occasionally interrupted by the opening ritornello and end with a final chorus.

Stop your tears

Four-part choir (soprano, alto, tenor, bass), four individual parts, strings and figured bass.
Text source unknown

This possibly last work by the master celebrates Easter. Instrumental ritornello and stanzas performed in solo singing alternate. At the end there is an amen based on the chorale Christ lay in death bonds .

Choral concert

The holy Christian has risen

2 tenors, 2 violins and figured bass

The chorale cantata is based on the 14th century Latin chant Surrexit Christ hodie , which was published in the Brothers Hymn book by Michael Weisse in 1531 . The cantus firmus used by Bruhns was already used by Valentin Triller in 1555 .

Fragmentary and uncertain works

Manuscript of the fugue in G minor

A prelude in G minor , similar in length to the small prelude in E minor, was discovered in 1970. The prelude makes use of parallel movements on the manual, which alternate with a pedal solo. A short Adagio, which ends with an organ point , introduces the sweeping fugue. The ending comes unexpectedly in the form of a repeated chord. Kollmannsperger attributes this prelude to Arnold Matthias Brunckhorst . An indication of a foreign authorship is the - compared to the other organ works by Bruhns - quite simple structure of the composition. The author is in the only source with Mons: Prunth. specified.

A short Adagio in the Husum organ book from 1758 . ⟨D major⟩ by Nicolai Bruhns. could come from an otherwise lost prelude.

Eitner also wrote the cantata How lovely are your apartments and the madrigal of Satana and his turmoil to Nicolaus Bruhns. As the author of the former, however, his uncle Friedrich Nicolaus was proven with high probability. The second has to be discussed with Bruhns for stylistic reasons; presumably it also comes from the Hamburg council musician.

Aftermath

Musical influence

Whether and how Nicolaus Bruhns directly influenced later baroque music cannot be clearly determined in view of the limited sources. One document in which his name appears is a letter to Johann Nikolaus Forkel written by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach in 1775 , which briefly states that his father Johann Sebastian “loved the organ works of several North German composers - including Bruhns - as well as some French composers and studied " should have. He wrote something similar in his 1754 Nekrolog on Johann Sebastian Bach . The reason was probably Johann Sebastian's access to the so-called Möller manuscript and the Andreas Bach book of his older brother and piano teacher Johann Christoph Bach . These music collections contain Bruhns' Preludes in E minor and the Prelude in G major. Riedel examined possible formal similarities in the work of Bruhns and Bach. Some of Bach's early works contain motifs that have a superficial similarity to those of Bruhns. However, since these were widespread at the time, no conclusive connection between the works of the two musicians can be established.

No references are known about the vocal work. However, several musicologists followed Stein's account of Bruhns as one of the composers who paved the way for the madrigal cantata; this is denied by Webber.

Modern rediscovery

In the 1930s, modern biographical research about Bruhns was carried out for the first time. At that time only four of the organ toccatas and one bass solo cantata were known from the work. In 1939 Stein published the first complete edition of the work as "Urtext". As with most of the North German masters, Bruhns lacks both secure autograph source material and multiple records, so that individual copies have to be used, such as those made by Agricola , Walther and Austria, among others . Newer editions of the works try to take this into account and to correct any errors that may have arisen when copying.

Nicolaus Bruhns is mentioned briefly in a section of the novella Renate (1878) by the native Husumer and music lover Theodor Storm , in which Georg Bruhns' evening organ play is used in a poetic mood. The life and work of the composer form the basis for the novel Midnight by Andreas Nohr.

Husum was the seat of the Nicolaus-Bruhns-Gesellschaft e. V. , which was founded in 1947 following a radio broadcast Bruhns concert under the direction of Kurt Rienecker. The chairmen were Rienecker and Walter Rath; Fritz Stein was honorary chairman of the society, which had its own choir and orchestra and carried out well over 100 music events with works by Bruhns and other composers. The composer's 350th birthday was honored in Schwabstedt and the Marienkirche (Husum) by the music branch of the Husum Theodor Storm School together with the ensemble avelarte <Leipzig> in July 2015.

While there were only three recordings in 1965, the selection of sound carrier releases of Bruhns' works has meanwhile grown considerably - including high-quality interpretations that have been recognized by music magazines. The organ works were published relatively often, also as complete recordings. The vocal works, on the other hand, have so far received less attention: In addition to several publications of individual pieces, there is only one complete recording on CD .

Eponyms

The asteroid (5127) Bruhns , discovered on February 4, 1989, has been named after him since July 1992.

literature

• Klaus Beckmann: The North German School. Organ music in Protestant Northern Germany between 1517 and 1755. Part II Heyday and decline 1620-1755 . Schott, Mainz 2009
• Michel Fructus: L'œuvre d'orgue de Nicolaus Bruhns (1665–1697), Essai sur la persuasion musicale dans l'Allemagne baroque du XVIIe siècle. (Diploma thesis), Lyon 1999.
• Michel Fructus: Les cantates de Nicolaus Bruhns (1665-1697). (Dissertation), Lyon 2009.
• Martin Geck : Nicolaus Bruhns - life and work . Music publisher Hans Gerig, Cologne 1968.
• Lorenzo Ghielmi : Nicolaus Bruhns. For the interpretation of the organ music . Editioni Carrara, Bergamo 2007, ISMN M-2157-4799-3
• Heinz Kölsch: Nicolaus Bruhns . Writings of the State Institute for Music Research. Bärenreiter, Kassel 1958 (republication of a dissertation from 1938, Kiel)
• Martial Leroux: Nicolaus Bruhns. In: Edmond Lemaître (ed.): Guide de la musique sacrée et chorale profane - L'âge baroque (1600–1750) . Éditions Fayard, Paris 1992, ISBN 2-213-02606-8 .
• Eckardt Opitz : Nicolaus Bruhns in: Those are our treasure and wealth. 60 portraits from Schleswig-Holstein . Christians, Hamburg 1990, pp. 61-64 ISBN 3-7672-1115-7 .
• Michel Roubinet: Nicolaus Bruhns . In: Gilles Cantagrel (ed.): Guide de la musique d'orgue . Éditions Fayard, Paris 1991, ISBN 2-213-02772-2 .
• Fritz Stein:  Bruns, Nikolaus. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 2, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1955, ISBN 3-428-00183-4 , p. 685 f. ( Digitized version ).
• Manfred Hartwig: Message from the organist, composer and violinist Nicolaus Bruhns (1665-1697) . In: Yearbook for local history in the Plön district, Plön 2016, pp. 135–152

Web links

• Works by and about Nicolaus Bruhns in the catalog of the German National Library
• Sheet music and audio files by Nicolaus Bruhns in the International Music Score Library Project
• Directory of sound carriers with organ works by Bruhns (French)
• Bruhns350

References and comments

1. ↑ Kölsch as well as some reference works state 32 years, but this contradicts the life data.
2. ^ ^{A b} Nicolaus Bruhns Society (ed.): Festschrift for the 300th birthday of Nicolaus Bruhns 1665–1697. Petersen, Husum 1965, p. 37.
3. ^ Johann Mattheson: Basis of an honor gate . Hamburg 1740: "Because he was very strong on the violin and knew how to play those with double fingerings as if they were 3rd or 4th, he had the habit of making the change now and then on the organ, that he let the violin listen to the most pleasantly at the same time, with a well-suited pedal voice all alone. "
4. ↑ Heinz Kölsch: Nicolaus Bruhns . Writings of the State Institute for Music Research. Bärenreiter, Kassel 1958 (republication of a dissertation from 1938, Kiel), p. 21
5. ^ Willi Apel: History of organ and piano music until 1700. Bärenreiter, Kassel 1967, p. 621.
6. ↑ My Hertz is ready : sheet music and audio files in the International Music Score Library Project
7. ↑ Dietrich Kollmannsperger: “Mons. Prunth ”, Prelude in G minor - a reassignment , in: Ars Organi . March 2006.
8. ^ Robert Eitner: Biographical-bibliographical source lexicon of musicians and music scholars of the Christian era up to the middle of the 19th century . Leipzig 1900–1904.
9. ^ F. Riedel, in: Die Musikforschung. 11.1958, p. 281 f.
10. ^ Fritz Stein: Nicolaus Bruhns, Complete Edition of the Works . Braunschweig 1937-39.
11. ^ Geoffrey Webber: North German church music in the age of Buxtehude . Clarendon Press, Oxford 1996, ISBN 0-19-816212-X ( David Yearsley review , accessed November 9, 2014.)
12. ↑ MKH Medien Kontor Hamburg, 2011, ISBN 978-3-934417-20-5 .
13. ↑ Ricercar Consort, RIC204.
14. ↑ Minor Planet Circ. 20522
15. ↑ Book Description and foreword by the author at the publisher, accessed December 18, 2011

This version was added to the list of excellent articles on October 28, 2005 .