The versatility of German church music

Abstract

In German-speaking lands during the 17th century, many church musicians composed for specific occasions—such as a Sunday in the liturgical year, or a funeral—and tailored their pieces for a particular ensemble or acoustic. Other composers in the period tried to make their sacred works as versatile as possible, for reuse at different times and places. In the first half of the century, when it was still common for sacred music to be published, the printed editions often included detailed instructions on how pieces could be adapted for ensembles of varying sizes and levels of skill. Manuscript collections of performing material (such as the Bohn collection, originally in Breslau and now held in Berlin) show how printed pieces were arranged for the larger ensembles available in cities. These practices of adaptation and rescoring also offer inspiration to modern-day performers seeking variety and innovation in their interpretations. In the first half of...