August Gottfried Ritter (25 August 1811 – 26 August 1885) was a German romantic composer and

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists. In addition, an organist may accompany congregational h ...

Biography

Co-creator, together with Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, of the first example of Romantic Organ Sonata (the first one was composed in 1845); he moved in 1847 from being organist in

Merseburg Merseburg () is a town in central Germany in southern Saxony-Anhalt, situated on the river Saale, and approximately 14 km south of Halle (Saale) and 30 km west of Leipzig. It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a dioces ...

cathedral to become organist in

Magdeburg Cathedral Magdeburg Cathedral (german: Magdeburger Dom), officially called the Cathedral of Saints Maurice and Catherine (german: Dom zu Magdeburg St. Mauritius und Katharina), is a Protestant cathedral in Germany and the oldest Gothic cathedral in the cou ...

. He also was "Royal-Prussian organ auditor". Ritter organized to build a new main organ in Magdeburg Cathedral and designed the stoplist. The organ with four manuals, mechanical key action and 81 stops was built by Adolf Reubke in 1856 to 1861. In his critical writings, Ritter condemned the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...

organ composers referred to as the " Colorists" for overindulging in

ornamentation An ornament is something used for decoration. Ornament may also refer to: Decoration *Ornament (art), any purely decorative element in architecture and the decorative arts *Biological ornament, a characteristic of animals that appear to serve on ...

Compositions

*''Toccata'' in D minor for organ * Choral Preludes for organ (opp. 7, 8 & 9) *''First Organ Sonata'' in D minor, op. 11 (ca. 1845) *''Second Organ Sonata'' in E minor, op. 19 (ca. 1850) *''Third Organ Sonata'' in A minor, op. 23, dedicated to Franz Liszt (ca. 1855) *''Fourth Organ Sonata'' in A major, op. 31 (ca. 1855) *''Andante in A minor'', Op. 26 (arrangement of second movement from

Beethoven's Seventh Symphony The Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92, is a symphony in four movements composed by Ludwig van Beethoven between 1811 and 1812, while improving his health in the Bohemian spa town of Teplitz. The work is dedicated to Count Moritz von Fries. A ...

) * Preludes, postludes etc. *''XXXII der gebräuchlichsten Choräle : mit Vor- und Zwischenspielen tacktgemäß verbunden : und mit Bezeichnung der Register und der Applicaturen versehen für die ersten Versuche im gottesdienstlichen Orgelspiele'' (32 Chorale-preludes) * Sinfonie concertante for 2 bassoons and orchestra * Variations on "

Heil dir im Siegerkranz "" (; German for "Hail to Thee in the Victor's Crown", literally: "Hail to Thee in the Victor's Wreath") was the official national anthem of the German Empire from 1871 to 1918 and royal anthem of Prussia from 1795 to 1918. Before the foundatio ...

" for organ *''Second Piano Sonata'', op. 21

Publications

*''Zur Geschichte des Orgelspieles, vornehmlich des deutschen, im 14. bis zum Anfang des 18. Jahrhunderts'' (''The History of Organ Playing from 14th to the 18th Centuries'', in 2 volumes) (1884) *''Kunst des Orgelspiels'' (''The Art of Organ Playing''), Op. 15

References

External links

Biography (German)
* 1811 births 1885 deaths German Romantic composers German classical organists German male organists Cathedral organists 19th-century classical composers German male classical composers 19th-century German composers 19th-century German male musicians Male classical organists 19th-century organists {{Organist-stub