From the Nov/Dec, 2022 issue of *Touchstone*

music

Injunction to Joy

by Ken Myers

Mention of Baroque “cantatas” or “oratorios” around the seasons of Advent and Christmas is most likely to evoke thoughts of the music of Bach or Handel. Unfortunately, the seasonal works by their less-celebrated contemporary Georg Philipp Telemann (1681–1767) are almost unknown, even among avid listeners to music from the early eighteenth century. Most of the music by Telemann that is played and heard today is from his large catalog of secular, instrumental music. But in his day, he was known best for his sacred choral compositions.

The son and grandson of Lutheran pastors, Telemann demonstrated early musical talent, composing his first opera at the age of 12. His mother was apparently set against his pursuing a career in music; she is said to have confiscated his violin, flute, and zither and forbade him to compose anymore, fearing that a life in music would only lead him in the ways of the ungodly. Encouraged, however, by various teachers to develop his talents, throughout his teens he enthusiastically performed and composed for church and school events.

At the age of 20 (perhaps in deference to his mother) he set off to study law at Leipzig University, stopping on the way in Halle to meet a talented teenager named Handel. After Telemann settled in at the university, a roommate spotted a musical setting of Psalm 6 among his belongings, and arranged for it to be sung at the Thomaskirche (where Bach would later enjoy the most fruitful years of his career). The mayor of Leipzig heard Telemann’s composition and was so impressed that he commissioned him to compose music fortnightly for use in the city’s churches. Studies in law were soon abandoned.

THIS ARTICLE ONLY AVAILABLE TO SUBSCRIBERS.
FOR QUICK ACCESS:

Ken Myers is the host and producer of the Mars Hill Audio Journal. Formerly an arts editor with National Public Radio, he also served as editor of Eternity, the Evangelical monthly magazine, and This World, the quarterly predecessor to First Things. He also serves as music director at All Saints Anglican Church in Ivy, Virginia. He is a contributing editor for Touchstone.

more on music from the online archives

33.3—May/June 2020

Consolation in Death

Bach's Cantata BWV 106, Gottes Zeit ist die allerbesteZeit (God's time is the very best time) by Ken Myers

calling all readers

Please Donate

"There are magazines worth reading but few worth saving . . . Touchstone is just such a magazine."
—Alice von Hildebrand

"Here we do not concede one square millimeter of territory to falsehood, folly, contemporary sentimentality, or fashion. We speak the truth, and let God be our judge. . . . Touchstone is the one committedly Christian conservative journal."
—Anthony Esolen, Touchstone senior editor

Support Touchstone

• Not a subscriber or wish to renew your subscription? Subscribe to Touchstone today for full online access. Over 30 years of publishing!

personal subscriptions

Purchase Print &
Online Subscription

Get six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for only $39.95. That's only $3.34 per month!

RENEW your print/online
subscription

Purchase
Online Subscription

Get a one-year full-access subscription to the Touchstone online archives including pdf downloads for only $19.95. That's only $1.66 per month!

RENEW your online subscription

gift subscriptions

GIVE Print &
Online Subscription

Give six issues (one year) of Touchstone PLUS full online access including pdf downloads for the reduced rate of $29.95. That's only $2.50 per month!

RENEW your gift subscription

Transactions will be processed on a secure server.

bulk subscriptions

Order Touchstone subscriptions in bulk and save $10 per sub! Each subscription includes 6 issues of Touchstone plus full online access to touchstonemag.com—including archives, videos, and pdf downloads of recent issues for only $29.95 each! Great for churches or study groups.

kindle subscription

OR get a subscription to Touchstone to read on your Kindle for only $1.99 per month! (This option is KINDLE ONLY and does not include either print or online.)

Your subscription goes a long way to ensure that Touchstone is able to continue its mission of publishing quality Christian articles and commentary.