June 14, 1923
MUSICAL COURIER
18
THREE JUBILEE CELEBRATIONS IN LEIPSIC, THE CITY OF BACH
700th Anniversary of the Thomas Church—200th Anniversary of Bach’s Call to Leipsic—50th Birthday of Karl Straube,
Cantor of the Thomas Church
By DR. ADOLF ABER
are they threatened with—sad as it would be, decay? So far as Leipsic is concerned, it need not fear these questions. It can proudly answer that none of the greatness of the church or school in the past centuries has been lessened. In Dr. Karl Straube, upon whom the University of Leipsic conferred the honorary title of Doctor and who, incidentally, celebrated his •fiftieth birthday this year, Leipsic has an artist who recognizes the responsibility of his position and one who will not only uphold but at the same time increase the importance of this traditional post. Similar to Bach, Straube, before his election as cantor, devoted part of his time to choir directing. He earned a reputation as a master of the organ and as such was by no means only an interpreter of old church compositions but also a champion of unknown modern composers, whose cause he espoused with all the strength and energy of his artistic personality. In this way he was the first to recognize Max Reger, whose friend he became and for whom he worked untiringly during his lifetime.
Straube’s education is a versatile one. Not only is he competent as a musician but he also has an astounding knowledge of German, French and English literature and is as familiar with the history of the old Roman emperors as with the letters of Bismarck. He is also well informed on all important topics of the day, political and otherwise. He is one of the few musicians who reveal a serious scientific interest in the history of music; in fact he is so well read that he could easily be made a member of the Royal Institute for Musical Science. Such is the man who, since 1918, has been the cantor of Thomas Church. He has raised the standard of the choir to a degree which it probably never had attained in the past. Well he might dare to be the first to take his renowned choir on tours far beyond the boundaries of its own country, and indeed, wherever it appeared it was triumphant, receiving the homage of vast audiences. By reason of these tours, Straube has added largely to the choir’s international fame.
The post of organist, which Straube vacated upon his election as cantor, is now held by his former pupil, Gunther Ramin, who, despite his youth, is recognized as one of the greatest of German musicians. He has grown up with the Thomas choir, in which he used to sing, and following his strong talent for the organ, he has made himself most efficient as a virtuoso. Among organists he may be classified as a romanticist. His originality in finding new combinations seems to be boundless; his sense of rhythm is strong and healthy and his phrasing of magnificent plasticity. Really a worthy disciple of his great master, Karl Straube1
The Choir Boys.
In such a jubilee as this it would be unjust not to mention the little choir boys who, by reason of their clear voices and devotion to their work, have been a leading factor in gaining the institution its fame. Let us peep into the daily lives of these youngsters. On the third floor of the school and directly under the roof is the dormitory containing sixty beds, where the little singers rest after the day’s work. Punctually at seven every morning the merci-
burg; George Philipp Telemann, city musical director and cantor of Hamburg; Georg Friederich Kauffmann, city musical director of Merseburg; Christoph Graussner, musical director of Darmstadt, and finally Johann Sebastian Bach, court musical director in Cothen. Of all these names, only that of Bach is familiar to this generation but at that time they were so prominent that Bach felt his chances for the	appointment	to	be	very	remote. Telemann was looked
upon	as	the	one	most	likely	to be chosen, since the council
of Leipsic was already negotiating with him. He appeared in August, 1722, and conducted a composition of his, which the city had printed as a mark of honor to the then famous musician. In September, he again came to Leipsic for final negotiations with the city officials, without, however, coming to a satisfactory result; and in November he notified the council that he would no longer consider the position. Only then were the applications of Graussner and Bach given consideration, with the result that the council was favorably inclined towards Bach’s rival, Graussner, who was in Leipsic at the time for the holiday church services and presented a Magnificat with great success.
His appointment to the position of Thomas cantor would have been assured, but for the intervention of the Count von Hessen, who refused to allow his worthy conductor to resign his Darmstadt post. He promised him a larger salary and finally induced him to decline the Leipsic offer. When, in 1723, Graussner’s message, announcing that he would not accept the post, arrived, the council was already negotiating with another candidate, namely Johann Sebastian Bach. Holding a position of much importance in Cothen as court conductor, it was not especially pleasant for Bach to have the position offered to him after two others had refused it. Certain changes which had recently taken place in the prince’s family, however, were not entirely sympathetic to Bách, and furthermore he was of the opinion that being cantor at Leipsic would give him more personal satisfaction as well as affording him opportunity for higher artistic development. So, in the beginning of February, Bach arrived in Leipsic and on Sunday, February 7, conducted his cantata, Jesus Took Unto Himself the Twelve, this work being, so to speak, his try-out. The council was fully satisfied with Bach’s musical qualifications, but there was still another duty besides music which a cantor had to undertake, and that was the obligation to teach Latin five hours each week.
Bach, who was an excellent Latin scholar, agreed to this stipulation and actually continued the work for a year, after which he arranged with a Herr Petzold, from the university, to take this work which was a worry to him, off his shoulders, paying him in return the sum of fifty talers a year.
Bach Is Elected.
On April 22, 1723, Bach’s election was formally ratified by the Church Consistory and on May 16 he conducted for the first time in the University Church, which was followed by his officiating in the Nicolai Church two weeks later. It was not until Tuesday,
June 1, 1723, however, that Bach was officially installed in his new position, with the usual ceremonies _ appropriate for such an occasion. Although the dates given here differ _ slightly from those given by Spitta in his great biography of Bach, they have recent!}׳ verified as accurate by Prof.
Dr. Kroker, director of the Leipsic Municipal Library.
A few rooms in the school building which adjoined the church constituted Bach’s official residence, and in this building which has long been sacrificed to the city’s progress, Bach composed his immortal works.
The Present Cantor.
It is not the writer’s intention to enter into a detailed estimate of Bach’s activities while Thomas cantor. But a jubilee year such as this suggests the question, how is this heritage Bach left us being taken care.of today? Are his works generally being heard and have they a promising future, or
A stranger strolling at dusk through the streets of Leipsic will hesitate, enchanted by the most revered structure of Leipsic’s Middle Ages—the Thomas Church (Thomas-kirche). Situated in the center of a modern commercial city, this proud example of Gothic architecture has, by its sheer grandeur, overwhelmed the spectator for the last seven hundred years. Three Greek crosses on the tremendous gable over the portal glitter in the moonlight; the powerful roof gives an impression of real peace and
safety, acting, so to speak, as a protector over the edifice; and above all this rises the quaint dome of the massive tower. One’s thoughts are reverent when strolling about this historic place of worship.
Hosts of faithful Protestants have wended their way through its portal to hear for the first time the immortal works of Johann Sebastian Bach. Today the cheerful choir-boys pass through this same portal toward the choir loft to offer the worshippers an hour of the noblest music. Passing through the portal, one is led to the spot where stood, until the latter part of the preceding century, the dormitory and school in which the finest boy singers of the land were trained for the Thomas choir. Upon turning into the small street on the south side of the church, one sees the statue of Bach, created by the masterful hand of Carl Seffner. In this masterpiece one beholds the greatest spirit of Protestantism since Martin Luther, the founder of the Thomas Church. Clad in festal robes, there stands the proud cantor with a manuscript in his right hand. Strangers may well hesitate before passing this mighty figure, since it embodies practically all that has gained for Leipsic its world renowned fame as a musical center.
Seven hundred years! Only a drop in the ocean of time and world’s happenings, but an exceedingly long time in the lives of human beings and of nations. The Thomas Church has lived through the historical epoch when Saxony was the eastern “March” of the old “Holy Roman Empire of German Nation” whence was attempted the dissemination of western culture. And was not the serious attention shown to church music one of the proudest tokens of this early culture? Thus is explained the foundation, in the thirteenth century, immediately following the erection of necessary defences against possible attacks from the East, of a school connected with the old monastery of St. Thomas, in which singers should be trained for the church. Already in those old days of Catholicism the training of youthful singers was entrusted to a “cantor,” and this custom remained in force even through the Reformation in 1539. In the year of 1543, the city of Leipsic made the school a municipal institution. From this date on therefore the position of “Thomas cantor” was under the city’s administration and had no connection whatever with the church, aside from the understanding that the incumbent cantor was also required to act as musical director in the two leading churches, namely St. Nicholas and St. Thomas. The choirs of both these churches were made up exclusively of singers trained in the Thomas school.
These boys received free board and room and were given a thorough education not only musically but otherwise. These same grants are still in force today. The old school, however, has been replaced by a large airy building in Hiller Street, so named after a former cantor, Ferdinand Hiller. Only a big school yard separates the building from the Thomas Gymnasium (preparatory school), in whicii the sixty young singers also receive their general education together with other students.
Bach’s Rivals for the Post.
When the Thomas cantor, Johann Kuhnau (still remembered by reason of his modest sonatas and by the important Bible Stories for piano) died on June 5, 1722, the post of Thomas cantor was considered an extraordinary one throughout Germany and candidates for the vacancy caused by Kuhnau’s death included some of the most notable musicians of the day, namely Johann Friedrich Fasch, court musical director of the Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst; Christian Friederich Rolle, musical director of the city of Magde-
ST. THOMAS’ CHURCH, LEIPSIC, FROM AN OLD PRINT.
(1) The Church; (2) the old St. Thomas’ School for the choir-hoys, note succeeded hy a modern structure near the same site; (3) The Old Fountain.
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ST. THOMAS’ CHOIR, LEIPSIC (DIE THOMANER), with Dr. Straube, the Cantor {director), and Gunther Ramin, organist, in center.