The Café Zimmermann, or was the coffeehouse of Gottfried Zimmermann in

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

which formed the backdrop to the first performances of many of Bach's secular cantatas, e.g. the ''Coffee Cantata'' (''

Schweigt stille, plaudert nicht ' (Be still, stop chattering), BWV 211, also known as the ''Coffee Cantata'', is a secular Bach cantata, cantata by Johann Sebastian Bach. He composed it probably between 1732 and 1735. Although classified as a cantata, it is essentially a mi ...

''), and instrumental works. In 1723, the year Bach moved to Leipzig, it was the largest and best-appointed Kaffeehaus of Leipzig and a centre for the middle classes and gentlemen. While women were forbidden from frequenting coffeehouses, they could attend public concerts at Zimmermann's. The coffeehouse was located at 14 Katharinenstrasse, then the most elegant street of Leipzig, connecting the Brühl to the market place. The name of the street had been taken from the old St. Catherine's Chapel which had been demolished in 1544. In Telemann's and Bach's day, only the name of the street remained. During the summer months, Zimmermann also ran an outdoor coffee garden in the outside the city walls, near the East Gate. The four-and-a-half-story Baroque building was constructed by Doering around 1715. It consisted of two adjoining rooms, one approximately , the other approximately . It was destroyed during an Allied air raid on Leipzig in December 1943. Zimmermann also ran a coffee garden as a summer venue.

Music

From 1720 the café hosted the Collegium Musicum founded by

Georg Philipp Telemann Georg Philipp Telemann (; – 25 June 1767) was a German Baroque composer and multi-instrumentalist. Almost completely self-taught in music, he became a composer against his family's wishes. After studying in Magdeburg, Zellerfeld, and Hild ...

as a law student in 1702. It was later directed by

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 ...

between 1729 and 1741, with a break between 1737 and 1739, while his former student Carl Gotthelf Gerlach stood in for Bach. The concerts directed by Bach lasted about two hours and consisted of German and Italian opera, chamber music, secular cantatas, and works for orchestra. Zimmermann charged the Collegium Musicum no fee for hosting their concerts, nor were the audience charged a fee; Zimmermann's expenses were repaid by sales of coffee. Iso Camartin, ''Bin ich Europäer?: Eine Tauglichkeitsprüfung'', pp. 75, 2006. "Gottfried Zimmermann war ein Kaffeehausbesitzer, der seine Räumlichkeiten von 1720 bis zu seinem Tod 1741 gern den musikalischen Ensembles der Stadt zur Verfügung stellte. Die Zuhörer bezahlten keinen Eintritt, sie tranken dafür Kaffee." The concerts ended with Zimmermann's death in 1741. The French classical music ensemble Café Zimmermann is named after this coffeehouse.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cafe Zimmermann Johann Sebastian Bach Coffeehouses and cafés in Germany 1720s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire Music venues in Germany Music in Leipzig Buildings and structures in Leipzig Georg Philipp Telemann