The Colorists (german: Koloristen) were a group of sixteenth-century German organ composers that heavily ornamented their compositions following Italian coloraturas and other figures. Among others, the colorists include

Sebastian Virdung Sebastian Virdung (born c. 1465) was a German composer and theorist on musical instruments. He is grouped among the composers known as the Colorists. He studied in Heidelberg as a scholar of Johannes von Soest at the chapel of the ducal court. Af ...

Arnolt Schlick Arnolt Schlick (July 18?,Keyl 1989, 110–11. c. 1455–1460 – after 1521) was a German organist, lutenist and composer of the Renaissance. He is grouped among the composers known as the Colorists. He was most probably born in Heidelberg and ...

Paul Hofhaimer Paul Hofhaimer (25 January 1459 – 1537) was an Austrian organist and composer. He was particularly gifted at improvisation, and was regarded as the finest organist of his age by many writers, including Vadian and Paracelsus; in addition he ...

, Bernhard Schmid the Elder, Bernhard Schmid the Younger, Jacob Paix,

Conrad Paumann Conrad Paumann (c. 1410January 24, 1473) was a German organist, lutenist and composer of the early Renaissance. A blind musician, he was one of the most talented musicians of the 15th century, and his performances created a sensation wherever h ...

, and Johann Woltz. The term was originally a derogatory designation applied by

August Gottfried Ritter August Gottfried Ritter (25 August 1811 – 26 August 1885) was a German romantic composer and organist. Biography Co-creator, together with Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, of the first example of Romantic Organ Sonata (the first one was composed ...

(1811–1885), and they were accused of having "overindulge in the use of splashy and meaningless coloratura passages."Hoelty-Nickel, Theodore. 1944. ''The Musical Heritage of the Church'', vol. 5. Valparaiso, IN: Valparaiso University, p. 44

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