Dieterich Buxtehude: Complete organ works
Urtext: Critical Source Edition
Ed. Harald Vogel
Breitkopf & Härtel. 2025
The release of the third and final volume of the Edition Breitkopf complete organ works (the choral works, in two sub-volumes) of Dieterich Buxtehude marks a considerable achievement in the complicated history of the transmission of the Lubeck master’s organ works. Edited by Harald Vogel, one of the pioneers of the modern interpretation of Buxtehude and his North German organ composer predecessors, the new edition answers many of the questions that Buxtehude interpretation has raised over the years. One of the many problems is that there are no autograph copies of any of Buxtehude’s organ pieces. We only have copies, which may or may not be based on authentic autographs. This new edition is a “pure source” edition, with no attempts to combine different transmissions or to apply editorial “corrections” to the texts.
Renaissance period and the start of the Baroque. Born in 1562, he was employed by the city of Amsterdam as organist of the Oude Kerk for 44 years until his death in 1621. Organ music in the Calvanist church was limited to occasional playing of pieces to familiarise the congregation with the choral melodies, before or after the service, but not during. So Sweelinck’s duties as city organist were generally to give concerts for the public and visitors. This have him time to build up an extensive teaching practice, attracting a generation of North German organists who returned to develop the influential Hamburg organ school that dominated the 17th century, culminating in the music Buxtehude in nearby Lübeck. His music was known throughout northern Europe, with two of his pieces includrf within the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book.
Andrew Benson-Wilson : Early Music Reviews + 