Johannes Vodnianus Campanus (also Ionnes Campanus Vodnianus, , ''Jan z Vodňan'' or ''Jan Kampánus Vodňanský'') (27 December 1572 – 13 December 1622) was a

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...

humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential, and agency of human beings, whom it considers the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humanism" ha ...

, composer, pedagogue, poet, and dramatist. He was born in

Vodňany Vodňany (; ) is a town in Strakonice District in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 7,400 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument zones, ...

(hence his

surname In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...

), in southern

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

. He studied at the University of Prague and in 1596 and was made Master of

Liberal Arts Liberal arts education () is a traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term ''skill, art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically the fine arts. ''Liberal arts education'' can refe ...

there. He became a teacher in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

and

Kutná Hora Kutná Hora (; ) is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 22,000 inhabitants. The history of Kutná Hora is linked to silver mining, which made it a rich and rapidly developing town. The centre of Kutná Hora, i ...

. From 1603 he taught

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

and

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

at the University of Prague. He also taught

history History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

and Latin

poetry Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

. He was repeatedly appointed as dean, prorector, and rector of this university. Campanus was a

Hussite file:Hussitenkriege.tif, upright=1.2, Battle between Hussites (left) and Crusades#Campaigns against heretics and schismatics, Catholic crusaders in the 15th century file:The Bohemian Realm during the Hussite Wars.png, upright=1.2, The Lands of the ...

before renouncing this faith and becoming a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

in 1622.

Works

Campanus usually wrote his works in Latin, but also wrote occasionally in

, Greek, and German. Some of his works, like the play ''Břetislav und Jitka'' (''Bretislaus'') (1614), were forbidden, because they were critical of the dukes of Bohemia. His works were recognized in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

for their metrical perfection. Campanus' first collection of musical works, ''Sacrarum odarum libri duo'', was published in

Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

in 1613. The ''Sacrarum odarum'', which includes ''Rorando coeli'', contains primarily short vocal works set in a simple, homorhythmic style. *''Turcicorum tyrannorum qui inde usque ab Otomanno rebus Turcicis praefuerunt, descriptio'' (1597) *''Heilige Oden/Posvátné ódy (Umdichtung der Psalmen Davids/Přebásnění Davidových žalmů'') *''Cechias'' (a history of Bohemia in verse form) *''Bretislaus'' (play) *Elegie der Angst (Elegie o strachu) *Bitte um Frieden (Prosba o mír) His

chant A chant (from French ', from Latin ', "to sing") is the iterative speaking or singing of words or sounds, often primarily on one or two main pitches called reciting tones. Chants may range from a simple melody involving a limited set of no ...

s include: *''Ad Jehovam'' *''Ad puelli Jesuki cunas'' *''Rorando coeli'': ''Rorando coeli'' has two

choir A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words ...

s. They imitate one another throughout. The double choir technique utilized in this

motet In Western classical music, a motet is mainly a vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from high medieval music to the present. The motet was one of the preeminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to the Eng ...

evokes the more complex antiphonal works of Campanus' contemporaries in

Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

Poems

*''Tristitia (In lectulo quaero meo)'' *''Surge iam linquens (Surge iam linquens thalamum tepentem)'' These were published in 1612, and can be found in the ''Cantica canticorum'' in ''Odaria'', LIII, od. 17. They were set to music by Jan Novák in the twentieth century.

Death and legacy

He died in Prague. A historical novel was published about him in 1909 by Zikmund Winter, called ''Mistr Kampanus: historický obraz''.

Sources

University of Mannheim biographical source

Lawrence Kaptein, Rorando Coeli

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Campanus, Johannes Vodnianus 1572 births 1622 deaths Rectors of universities in the Holy Roman Empire Scholars from Bohemia 16th-century writers from Bohemia 17th-century writers from Bohemia 16th-century classical composers 17th-century classical composers Czech Renaissance humanists Hussite people Czech poets Czech male poets Czech composers Czech male composers Choral composers Rectors of Charles University Charles University alumni People from Vodňany Renaissance composers