Johann Gotthilf Ziegler (25 March 1688 in

Leubnitz Leubnitz is a village and a former municipality in the Vogtlandkreis district, in Saxony, Germany. Since 1 January 2011, it is part of the municipality Rosenbach.Halle an der Saale Halle (Saale), or simply Halle (; from the 15th to the 17th century: ''Hall in Sachsen''; until the beginning of the 20th century: ''Halle an der Saale'' ; from 1965 to 1995: ''Halle/Saale'') is the largest city of the German state of Saxony-Anh ...

) was a German baroque

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

and

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...

. He is a descendant of a musical family, not unlike that of

J.S. Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suite ...

, though on a somewhat smaller scale, and belongs, together with Gottfried Kirchhoff and

Friedrich Wilhelm Zachow Friedrich Wilhelm Zachow or Zachau (14 November 1663, Leipzig – 7 August 1712, Halle) was a German musician and composer of vocal and keyboard music. Life Zachow probably received his training from his father, the piper Heinrich Zachow, o ...

to the group of composers of the so-called ''Hallischen Spätbarock''. His father was the schoolhead and organist Daniel Ziegler (born 1630), son of the Saxon schoolteacher Johann Ziegler.

Life

Ziegler had already caused a stir as a child prodigy at the Dresdener court of

August the Strong Augustus II; german: August der Starke; lt, Augustas II; in Saxony also known as Frederick Augustus I – Friedrich August I (12 May 16701 February 1733), most commonly known as Augustus the Strong, was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as K ...

, as his contemporary

Johann Gottfried Walther Johann Gottfried Walther (18 September 1684 – 23 March 1748) was a German music theorist, organist, composer, and lexicographer of the Baroque era. Walther was born at Erfurt. Not only was his life almost exactly contemporaneous to that ...

, a distant cousin of Bach, wrote in his ''Musicalischem Lexicon'' that he could sing at the age four, play the keyboard a couple of years later, and as a 10-year-old play the organ at religious services. Gotthilf became a pupil of Christian Petzold, organist of the

Sophienkirche The Sophienkirche (Saint Sophia's Church) was a church in Dresden. It was located on the northeast corner of the Postplatz (post office square) in the old town before it was severely damaged in the Dresden bombing in 1945 and subsequently destr ...

. He also studied three years in the ''Collegium musicum des Paedagogium regium'' of August Francke, in Halle, where he also studied law and theology for 3 years. In 1710 he became a pupil of ''Friedrich Zachow'' (who was also the teacher of Johann Philipp Krieger and none other than

George Frideric Händel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concertos. Handel received his trainin ...

. In 1715 Gotthilf also took lessons with

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

, especially in the art of choral music. In 1714 he became assistant of the organist A. Meissner in the ''Ullrichskirche'' in Halle. Four years later he succeeded Meissner as organist and ''Director musicis'' until his own death in 1747. He also acted as Bach's agent in the sale of various musical printings. Ziegler was married to ''Anna Elisabeth Krüger'', with whom he had 5 children. His daughter Johanna Charlotte Ziegler (1725-1782) was a poet and wrote texts for some of Bach's cantatas, A cousin was the composer and organist Christian Gottlieb Ziegler.

Works

* Four annual cantata cycles with lyrics by

Christian Friedrich Hunold Christian Friedrich Hunold (born 29 September 1680 in Wandersleben near Gotha (town), Gotha, died 16 August 1721 in Halle (Saale), Halle) was a German author who wrote under the pseudonym Menantes. Biography Hunold went to school in Arnstadt ...

* ''Christi Glieder, Christi Brüder'', cantata (1717) * ''Da hörst du, Mensch, was deines Gottes Wille'', cantata (1716) * funeral music.

References

*Robert Eitner: Ziegler, Johann Gotthilf. In:

Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie ''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie'' (ADB, german: Universal German Biography) is one of the most important and comprehensive biographical reference works in the German language. It was published by the Historical Commission of the Bavarian Aca ...

(ADB). Band 45, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1900, S. 182 f. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ziegler, Johann Gotthilf 1688 births 1747 deaths 18th-century classical composers German Baroque composers German male classical composers Musicians from Dresden People from Halle (Saale) 18th-century German composers 18th-century German male musicians