"" (Search, whoever wants, for a different goal) is a

Lutheran hymn Martin Luther was a great enthusiast for music, and this is why it forms a large part of Lutheran services; in particular, Luther admired the composers Josquin des Prez and Ludwig Senfl and wanted singing in the church to move away from the '' ...

in five stanzas with a text written by

Georg Weissel Georg Weissel (1590 – 1 August 1635) was a German Lutheranism, Lutheran minister and hymn writer. Born in Domnovo, Domnau in Ducal Prussia, a vassal of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Weissel studied theology and music at the University o ...

in 1623 to a melody that

Johann Stobäus Johann Stobäus (6 July 158011 September 1646) was a North German composer and lutenist. Life Stobäus was born at Graudenz, now in Poland. From 1599 to 1608 he was a pupil of Johannes Eccard, the Kapellmeister of Königsberg. In 1601 he join ...

had created in 1613.

History

The Lutheran theologian Georg Weissel was appointed minister of the

Altrossgarten Church Altrossgarten Church (german: Altroßgärter Kirche, also spelled ''Altroßgärtner'') was a Prussian Union (Evangelical Christian Church), Protestant church (building), church in northeastern Königsberg, Germany. Johann Friedrich Schultz, an Age o ...

Königsberg Königsberg (, ) was the historic Prussian city that is now Kaliningrad, Russia. Königsberg was founded in 1255 on the site of the ancient Old Prussian settlement ''Twangste'' by the Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades, and was named ...

in 1623. For the inauguration of the church on the second Sunday in

Advent Advent is a Christian season of preparation for the Nativity of Christ at Christmas. It is the beginning of the liturgical year in Western Christianity. The name was adopted from Latin "coming; arrival", translating Greek ''parousia''. In ...

that year, he wrote the hymn "

Macht hoch die Tür "Macht hoch die Tür" (Fling wide the door) is a German popular Advent hymn, written in Ducal Prussia in the 17th century. The lyrics were written by Georg Weissel in 1623, for the inauguration of the Altroßgärter Kirche in Königsberg. The mel ...

". When he took up the post as minister the following Sunday, he wrote "" for the occasion. Weissel knew

, the composer of the tune, already from the time of studies in Königsberg. He used a tune that Stobäus had created in 1613 for a wedding hymn "". The earliest extant print of ''Such, wer da will'' is a five-part motet by Stobäus in a collection ''Preußische Festlieder'' (Prussian festive hymns) that Stobäus published in 1642, of his works and those of his teacher Johannes Eccard. The song was included in several hymnals. In the current German Protestan hymnal Evangelisches Gesangbuch as EG 346.

Theme and form

The gospel for the third Sunday in Advent () contains a question from

John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

: "Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?" The answer by Jesus is the starting point for the hymn: Jesus is seen as the leader to follow, the redeemer and the comforter when facing trouble and death. The first stanza is an individual profession, the second focused on the congregation, the third a missionary invitation, and the last two individual prayer. It is prominently Weissels own profession at the beginning of his tenure as minister, to follow Christ alone, as both

Paul Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) *Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chris ...

and

Luther Luther may refer to: People * Martin Luther (1483–1546), German monk credited with initiating the Protestant Reformation * Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968), American minister and leader in the American civil rights movement * Luther (give ...

had taught. Other ''Nothelfer'' (helpers in need) are rejected, which can be read as a rejection of both the

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

belief in the

intercession of saints Intercession of the Saints is a Christian doctrine held by the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Catholic churches. The practice of praying through saints can be found in Christian writings from the 3rd century onward. The 4th-century Apo ...

, and of

superstition A superstition is any belief or practice considered by non-practitioners to be irrational or supernatural, attributed to fate or magic, perceived supernatural influence, or fear of that which is unknown. It is commonly applied to beliefs and ...

. Weissel used the complex form of a wedding song by an anonymous author. Each stanza has eleven lines, eight of them with only two stressed syllables (1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10), the others with three stresses. The rhyming scheme requires high literary art. Weissel's text was so good that it was not altered later.

Melodies and settings

Johann Stobäus wrote a melody in 1613, which shows characteristic leaps and syncopes. He composed a five-part motet in 1642. When a hymnal for several Lutheran provinces was edited in the 1920s, the tune by Stobäus was replaced by the melody of "" by , but for the hymnal '' Evangelisches Gesangbuch'' the original melody was restored. An American-German Lutheran hymnal of 1894 has the hymn with the melody of "" by

Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Reformation, Protestant Refo ...

.Compare the

Version Version may refer to: Computing * Software version, a set of numbers that identify a unique evolution of a computer program * VERSION (CONFIG.SYS directive), a configuration directive in FreeDOS Music * Cover version * Dub version * Remix * ''Ve ...

of an American-German Lutheran hymnal of 1894.

Karl Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...

composed in 1948 a motet ''Such, wer da will, ein ander Ziel'', set for two to three voices and two instruments. Gustav Gunsenheimer included in 1968 the first stanza to conclude his '' Evangelienmotette'' '' Die Versuchung Jesu''.

References

External links

Such, wer da will, ein ander Ziel (Johann Stobäus)
ChoralWiki {{Authority control 17th-century hymns in German Lutheran hymns Hymn tunes