Friedrich Wilhelm Zachow or Zachau (14 November 1663 – 7 August 1712) was a German musician and composer of vocal and keyboard music.

Life

Zachow was born in

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

. He probably received his training from his father, the piper Heinrich Zachow, one of Leipzig's town musicians in the Alta capella, and maybe from

Johann Schelle Johann Schelle (6 September 1648 – 10 March 1701) was a German Baroque composer. Biography Schnelle was born on 6 September 1648 in Geising, Saxony. From 1655 to 1657 he was a choirboy in Dresden and pupil of Heinrich Schütz. From 1657 to 1664 ...

, a leading German composer, when the family moved to

Eilenburg Eilenburg (; , ) is a town in Germany. It lies in the district of Nordsachsen in Saxony, approximately 20 km northeast of the city of Leipzig. Geography Eilenburg lies at the banks of the river Mulde at the southwestern edge of the D� ...

.Zachow, Friedrich Wilhelm
/ref> As Kantor and organist of Halle's Market Church in 1684 he succeeded Samuel Ebart. During his time at Halle he became particularly renowned as a composer of dramatic

cantata A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian language, Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal music, vocal Musical composition, composition with an musical instrument, instrumental accompaniment, ty ...

s. In 1695 he was criticized by the pietists because of his excessive long and elaborate music, that could be only appreciated by cantors and organists. Zachow was influenced by

Johann Theile Johann Theile (29 July 1646 – 24 June 1724) was a German composer of the Baroque era, famous for the opera ''Adam und Eva, Der erschaffene, gefallene und aufgerichtete Mensch'', first performed in Hamburg on 2 January 1678. Life After stud ...

Merseburg Merseburg () is a town in central Germany in southern Saxony-Anhalt, situated on the river Saale, and approximately 14 km south of Halle (Saale) and 30 km west of Leipzig. It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a diocese ...

and the poetry of Erdmann Neumeister, pastor in the nearby Weissenfels, and his criticism on pietism. Zachow was the teacher of Gottfried Kirchhoff,

Johann Philipp Krieger Johann Philipp Krieger (also ''Kriger'', ''Krüger'', ''Krugl'', and ''Giovanni Filippo Kriegher''; baptised 27 February 1649; died 7 February 1725) was a German people, German Baroque composer and organist. He was the elder brother of Johann Kri ...

and Johann Gotthilf Ziegler, but is best remembered as

George Frideric Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel ( ; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concerti. Born in Halle, Germany, H ...

's first music teacher. He taught Handel how to play the violin,

organ Organ and organs may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a group of tissues organized to serve a common function * Organ system, a collection of organs that function together to carry out specific functions within the body. Musical instruments ...

harpsichord A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a musical keyboard, keyboard. Depressing a key raises its back end within the instrument, which in turn raises a mechanism with a small plectrum made from quill or plastic that plucks one ...

, and

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double-reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common type of oboe, the soprano oboe pitched in C, ...

as well as

counterpoint In music theory, counterpoint is the relationship of two or more simultaneous musical lines (also called voices) that are harmonically dependent on each other, yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. The term originates from the Latin ...

. Zachow's teaching was so effective, that in 1702, Handel accepted a position as organist at the former Dom in Halle at age seventeen. It is said that after Zachow died in 1712, Handel became a benefactor to his widow and children in gratitude for his teacher's instruction. In 1713 J.S. Bach was invited as Zachow's successor. Handel continued to use Zachow's compositions in his own works, not simply quoting, but also in terms of instrumental colour; for example the cantata ''Herr, wenn ich nur dich habe'', which is unique in having a harp solo in the German cantata repertoire, was copied by Handel, taken to London, and may have influenced the instrumentation of ''

Saul Saul (; , ; , ; ) was a monarch of ancient Israel and Judah and, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament, the first king of the United Monarchy, a polity of uncertain historicity. His reign, traditionally placed in the late eleventh c ...

'' and ''

Esther Esther (; ), originally Hadassah (; ), is the eponymous heroine of the Book of Esther in the Hebrew Bible. According to the biblical narrative, which is set in the Achaemenid Empire, the Persian king Ahasuerus falls in love with Esther and ma ...

''. Zachow died in Halle at age 48.

Selected works, editions and recordings

*Mass – Missa super chorale Christ lag in Todesbanden (1701) *Approximately 24 cantatas survive: :''Chorus ille coelitum'' (1698) :''Confitebor tibi Domine'' (1701) :''Danksaget dem Vater'' (1702) :(see also recordings below) *Keyboard works: Toccata C-Dur, Präludium C-Dur, Präludium F-Dur, Fuge C-Dur, Two Fugues G-Dur, Fantasia D-Dur, Capriccio d-Moll, Suite h-Moll, several organ chorales *Trio F-Dur für Flauto traverso, Fagott und Basso continuo

Recordings

Christmas cantata A Christmas cantata or Nativity cantata is a cantata, music for voice or voices in several movements, for Christmas. The importance of the feast inspired many composers to write cantatas for the occasion, some designed to be performed in church ser ...

s. ''Meine Seel: erhebt den Herren; Herr, wenn ich nur dich habe; Preiset mit mir den Herren; Lobe den Herrn, meine Seele''

Constanze Backes Constanze Backes is a classically trained German soprano in opera and concert. She has toured throughout Europe and performed in many classical genres but over the last few years has focused primarily on Early music. In addition she teaches child ...

, Capella Frisiae & Accademia Amsterdam, dir. Ludger Remy. Quintone.nl 2010 *Easter cantatas. ''Ich bin die Auferstehung und das Leben. Bei Gott ist mein Heil, meine Ehre. Ach Herr, mich armen Sünder'' (attributed to Handel but probably by Zachow) Osterdialog ''Triumph, ihr Christen seid erfreut''. Gudrun Sidonie Otto, Margaret Hunter, Christoph Dittmar, Cantus Thuringia, Capella Thuringia, dir. Bernhard Klapprott CPO 2010 *Suite in B for harpsichord. ''Carole Cerasi - J.S. Bach and the Möller Manuscript''
Metronome Recordings - METCD 1055

References

External links

*

bach-cantatas.com * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Zachow, Friedrich Wilhelm 1663 births 1712 deaths German male classical composers 17th-century German composers German Baroque composers Organists and composers in the North German tradition German classical organists Musicians from Leipzig People from the Electorate of Saxony 18th-century German keyboardists 18th-century German classical composers 18th-century German male musicians German male classical organists