Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer
Synopsis
Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer (1656-1746) was a German composer who influenced composers in the generation before J.S. Bach. He composed italianate vocal compositions, liturgical organ works in the German tradition, and orchestral and keyboard works. Fischer was responsible for bringing a French influence into German music.[1]
Oxford Music Online had this to say concerning Fischer's organ works:
Of the two organ collections, Praeludia et Fugae per 8 tonos ecclesiasticos, a cycle of versets for alternatim performance in divine service, seems to date from the beginning of the 18th century but was not published until later. Although its themes (which are repeated and inverted in successive versets) are more malleable and its counterpoints more masterly, it is stylistically on a par with the composer's other organ collection, Ariadne musica. Because of the large number of keys employed, the 20 preludes and fugues of Ariadne musica are historically more important. The original print of 1702 is lost, but a manuscript copy in the Minorite convent in Vienna and a mention in Walther's Lexicon provide evidence of its existence. This series of pieces begins in C major and ends, after 18 keys with accidentals, in C minor (closing in the major). The collection contributed to the question of the tempered tuning of keyboard instruments, described most clearly and thoroughly by Werckmeister in his Orgel-Probe (1681) and more particularly in its second edition (1698). J.S. Bach knew and valued the collection, and adopted some of the themes in Das wohltemperierte Clavier.
Fischer's bold venture was probably the result of cooperation with an organ builder who had a liking for experiments. With the consent of Abbot Raimund Wilfert of Tepl, to whom Ariadne musica is dedicated, Fischer and Abraham Stark (1659–1709), an organ builder from Elbogen, tuned the choir organ of Tepl monastery to something approaching equal temperament in 1700. Their success was followed by the composition and printing of Ariadne musica, an experiment which Fischer repeated, although with fewer keys, in the litanies printed in 1711. He later added a conservative appendix to Ariadne: five ricercares on Catholic hymns, preludes to the main feasts of the church year.[2]
For details, see the Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer article on Wikipedia.
List of Organ Works
| Title |
|---|
| Praeludia et Fugae per 8 tonos ecclesiasticos |
| Ariadne musica |
Background and General Perspectives on Performing Fischer Organ Works
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Registration and Organs
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See the footnote in the "Notes" section at the bottom of the page[3]
Fingering and Pedaling
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Articulation and Phrasing
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Ornamentation
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Tempo and Meter
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Scores and Editions
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Recordings
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Free Online
Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer - Chaconne (Euterpe), performed by Massimo Gabba [1]
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Other Resources
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Notes
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