The Best of Telemann
Georg Philipp Telemann (was a German Baroque composer and multiinstrumentalist. Almost completely selftaught in music, he became a composer against his family s wishes. After studying in Magdeburg, Zellerfeld, and Hildesheim, Telemann entered the University of Leipzig to study law, but eventually settled on a career in music. He held important positions in Leipzig, Sorau, Eisenach, and Frankfurt before settling in Hamburg in 1721, where he became musical director of that city s five main churches. While Telemann s career prospered, his personal life was always troubled: his first wife died only a few months after their marriage, and his second wife had extramarital affairs and accumulated a large gambling debt before leaving him. Telemann is one of the most prolific composers in history1 (at least in terms of surviving oeuvre)2 and was considered by his contemporaries to be one of the leading German composers of the timehe was compared favorably both to his friend Johann Sebastian Ba br, br,
|
|