147: Dieterich Buxtehude

 Dieterich Buxtehude was one of the most important composers of the late Baroque era, especially known for his organ music and influence on later composers such as Johann Sebastian Bach. Born around 1637, probably in what is now Denmark or northern Germany, Buxtehude spent most of his career in the city of Lübeck, where he served as organist at St. Mary’s Church. His reputation as a brilliant performer and composer spread widely throughout northern Europe.


Buxtehude’s music combined technical brilliance with deep emotional and spiritual expression. He composed preludes, fugues, chorale settings, and sacred vocal works that demonstrated both imagination and mastery of counterpoint. His organ preludes were especially innovative, often shifting dramatically between free, improvisatory passages and tightly structured fugues. These works helped shape the North German organ tradition and laid important groundwork for the music of Bach.


One of Buxtehude’s most famous contributions to musical life was the “Abendmusiken,” a series of evening concerts held at St. Mary’s Church in Lübeck. These performances attracted visitors from across Europe and were unusual for the time because they were public concerts rather than strictly church services. The young Bach famously walked more than 200 miles from Arnstadt to Lübeck in 1705 to hear Buxtehude play and learn from him, staying several months longer than he had originally planned.


Today, Buxtehude is remembered as a central figure in Baroque music. Although he was overshadowed for many years by Bach and other later composers, modern musicians and scholars recognize his originality and influence. His organ and sacred works remain staples of the early music repertoire and continue to be performed in churches and concert halls around the world.



Here are some of his works:


• https://youtu.be/w2GoH4-Gm44?si=aERrO5mlQfAZqu5A

• https://youtu.be/jOMnYNLpt7k?si=oC1tjRhNtuj2U0i7

• https://youtu.be/a14AKqKuvG0?si=W97WFSx73z7puHtT

• https://youtu.be/0qP-qxQ_-8s?si=4ST0-3jxFK_oSud-


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