Johann Rudolph Ahle (24 December 1625 – 9 July 1673) was a German composer, organist, theorist, and Protestant church musician.

Biography

Ahle was born in Mühlhausen,

Thuringia Thuringia (; german: Thüringen ), officially the Free State of Thuringia ( ), is a state of central Germany, covering , the sixth smallest of the sixteen German states. It has a population of about 2.1 million. Erfurt is the capital and lar ...

. While not much is known of his early musical training, he attended the

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...

Göttingen Göttingen (, , ; nds, Chöttingen) is a university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the capital of the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. At the end of 2019, the population was 118,911. General information The ori ...

and then studied

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

at the

University of Erfurt The University of Erfurt (german: Universität Erfurt) is a public university located in Erfurt, the capital city of the German state of Thuringia. It was founded in 1379, and closed in 1816. It was re-established in 1994, three years after Germ ...

from 1645 to 1649. In 1646 he became

cantor A cantor or chanter is a person who leads people in singing or sometimes in prayer. In formal Jewish worship, a cantor is a person who sings solo verses or passages to which the choir or congregation responds. In Judaism, a cantor sings and lead ...

at the in

Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital and largest city in the Central German state of Thuringia. It is located in the wide valley of the Gera river (progression: ), in the southern part of the Thuringian Basin, north of the Thuringian Forest. It sits i ...

. In 1648 he published the ''Compendium per tenellis'', a theoretical treatise on choral singing which was reprinted several times during his lifetime and for a last time 50 years later by his son Johann Georg (the last edition appeared in 1704). In 1654 Ahle assumed the post of organist at the Divi Blasii in Mühlhausen. The next year he married Anna Maria Wölfer; their son, Johann Georg Ahle (1651–1706), was also a well-known composer and organist. Ahle was elected a town councillor in Mühlhausen in the 1650s, and was elected

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

shortly before his death in 1673. His immediate successor at the church was his son Johann Georg, and then briefly

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 wo ...

, who worked in Mühlhausen in 1707/08. Much of Ahle's compositional output consists of sacred choral and vocal works, instrumental music, and organ music. He is best known for motets and sacred concertos (most of them in German, some in Latin) contained in the collection ''Neu-gepflanzte Thüringische Lust-Garten, in welchem ... Neue Geistliche Musicalische Gewaechse mit 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10 und mehr Stimmen auf unterschiedliche Arten mit und ohne Instrument ... versetzet'' (1657–65). He is also known for hymn melodies, of which three remain in the common German Protestant hymnal '' Evangelisches Gesangbuch'', including "

Liebster Jesu, wir sind hier "" (literally: Dearest Jesus, we are here) is a Lutheran hymn with text written by Tobias Clausnitzer in 1663, and a hymn tune, Zahn No. 3498b, based on a 1664 melody by Johann Rudolph Ahle (Zahn No. 3498a). A prayer for illumination, ...

" and "

Morgenglanz der Ewigkeit "" (Morning splendour of eternity) is a Christian hymn with German text originally by Christian Knorr von Rosenroth, written around 1690 and set to music for private devotion. It became known with a 1662 melody by Johann Rudolf Ahle. The song is p ...

". The melody of the latter was used by

Friedrich Dörr Friedrich Dörr (7 March 190813 May 1993) was a German Catholic priest and professor of theology, who is known as a hymnwriter. He shaped the first common German Catholic hymnal, ''Gotteslob'', published in 1975. Life Friedrich Dörr was born i ...

for the Advent song "

Kündet allen in der Not "" (Tell all in need) is a Christian hymn with German text by Friedrich Dörr written in 1971 to a 1662 melody by Johann Rudolf Ahle. The song is part of the German Catholic hymnal ''Gotteslob''. History Friedrich Dörr wrote the text of "" in 1 ...

Notes

References

Cited sources

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Uwe Wolf Uwe Wolf (born 10 August 1967 in Neustadt an der Weinstraße) is a German football coach and former professional player. Honours Necaxa * Primera División de México: 1995–96 References External links * 1967 births Living p ...

– Programme notes to BIS-CD-821, 1996 * Markus Rathey, Johann Rudolph Ahle. 1625–1673. Lebensweg und Schaffen, Eisenach: Wagner, 1999
Johann Rudolf Ahle (Composer)
Bach Cantatas Website

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ahle, Johann Rudolph German classical composers German Baroque composers German classical organists German male organists 1625 births 1673 deaths 17th-century classical composers German male classical composers 17th-century male musicians Male classical organists