Georg Reutter (3 November 1656 – 29 August 1738) was an Austrian

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists. In addition, an organist may accompany congregational ...

theorbo The theorbo is a plucked string instrument of the lute family, with an extended neck and a second pegbox. Like a lute, a theorbo has a curved-back sound box (a hollow box) with a wooden top, typically with a sound hole, and a neck extending out ...

player, and composer.

Biography

Georg Reutter was born in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

and became a pupil of Johann Caspar Kerll, whom he later succeeded as

at St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna, in 1686. In 1695 he spent some time in Italy. He was ennobled in Rome on 8 January 1695 by Prince Sforza; unlike his son, he did not use his title. Between 1696 and 1703 Reutter was employed in the Viennese court chapel as continuo player on the theorbo. The principal ''Kapellmeister,'' Antonio Draghi, recommended him to the emperor as ‘a virtuoso player able to play many instruments’. He was married three times and was the father of 15 children, of whom two became musicians (Karl and the younger Georg). In 1700 Reutter was formally appointed court organist. In 1712 he succeeded

Fux Fuchs (German and Yiddish for "fox") is a surname; it has as variants Fux, Fuhs and Fuchß. Notable persons bearing it include the following: Notable people Fuchs, A - D * Arved Fuchs (born 1953), German writer and adventurer * Benjamin Fuchs ...

as vice-''Kapellmeister'' and in 1715 as first ''Kapellmeister'' of the cathedral; he retained that position until 1728. He passed on the position of cathedral organist to his son Georg Reutter II in 1720. He died in Vienna. As a composer Reutter is best known for his collection of

toccatas Toccata (from Italian ''toccare'', literally, "to touch", with "toccata" being the action of touching) is a virtuoso piece of music typically for a keyboard or plucked string instrument featuring fast-moving, lightly fingered or otherwise virt ...

. He also composed a large number of so-called '' Versetteln'' or short organ preludes.Karl Geiringer Haydn: A Creative Life in Music 1982 - Page 19 There were two Viennese composers of this name. Georg Reutter, the father (1656-1738), was choir director of St. Stephen's and court organist. His son, J. A. Karl Georg ( 1708- 1772), was Haydn's teacher. It is not always easy to distinguish between the compositions of the father and those of the son. See Norbert Hofer, "Die beiden Reutter als Kirchenkomponisten," ..

References

1656 births 1738 deaths 17th-century Austrian people 17th-century classical composers 18th-century Austrian people 18th-century classical composers 18th-century Austrian male musicians Austrian classical composers Austrian male classical composers Austrian classical musicians Austrian classical organists Male classical organists Austrian untitled nobility Austrian Baroque composers Musicians from Vienna Composers from Vienna 18th-century keyboardists 17th-century male musicians {{Austria-composer-stub