Michael Franck (16 March 1609 – 24 September 1667) was a German poet, composer and Protestant hymnwriter. He was born in

Schleusingen Schleusingen is a town in the district of Hildburghausen, in Thuringia, Germany. It is situated 10 km north of Hildburghausen, and 12 km southeast of Suhl. Geography The town of Schleusingen in the Henneberger Land got its name from ...

, and died in

Coburg Coburg () is a town located on the Itz river in the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Long part of one of the Thuringian states of the Wettin line, it joined Bavaria by popular vote only in 1920. Until the revolution of 1918, it ...

. Franck initially established a career as a baker. Although he was fairly successful, "he became completely impoverished, because of nocturnal thefts and plunders of his house". He moved to

in 1640, and began teaching. There, he also wrote

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hy ...

s and poems.

Johann Rist Johann Rist (8 March 1607 – 31 August 1667) was a German poet and dramatist best known for his hymns, which inspired musical settings and have remained in hymnals. Life Rist was born at Ottensen in Holstein-Pinneberg (today Hamburg) on 8 Marc ...

thought highly of Franck's poetry, and, in 1659, inducted Franck into his literary association, ''

Elbschwanenorden The ''Elbschwanenorden'' (Order of Elbe Swans) was a literary association of the Baroque, founded between 1656 and 1660, dissolved in 1667. It was initiated by the poet and Protestant minister Johann Rist in Wedel and is named after the situation ...

'' (Order of Elbe Swans).

Hymns

Franck's hymns have been incorporated into compositions by

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wo ...

and

Georg Philipp Telemann Georg Philipp Telemann (; – 25 June 1767) was a German Baroque composer and multi-instrumentalist. Almost completely self-taught in music, he became a composer against his family's wishes. After studying in Magdeburg, Zellerfeld, and Hild ...

. Franck's hymn "

Ach wie flüchtig, ach wie nichtig "" (Ah how fleeting, ah how insubstantial) is a German Lutheran hymn with lyrics by Michael Franck, who published it with his own melody and a four-part setting in 1652. Johann Crüger's reworked version of the hymn tune was published in 1661. Sev ...

" was the base for Bach's

chorale cantata A chorale cantata is a church cantata based on a chorale—in this context a Lutheran chorale. It is principally from the German Baroque era. The organizing principle is the words and music of a Lutheran hymn. Usually a chorale cantata includes m ...

''Ach wie flüchtig, ach wie nichtig'', BWV 26.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Franck, Michael 1609 births 1667 deaths People from Hildburghausen (district) German bakers 17th-century German educators German Protestant hymnwriters German poets Writers from Thuringia 17th-century hymnwriters