Cyriakus Schneegass (german: Schneegaß; la, Snegassius, 5 October 1546 – 23 October 1597) was a German

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

pastor, hymn writer, composer and music theorist.

Life

Schneegass was born in 1546 in the village of Bufleben, north of

Gotha Gotha () is the fifth-largest city in Thuringia, Germany, west of Erfurt and east of Eisenach with a population of 44,000. The city is the capital of the district of Gotha and was also a residence of the Ernestine Wettins from 1640 until the ...

. He came from a peasant family and experienced a youth shaped by military turmoil during the Smalcaldic War, with the siege of Gotha by the Elector

Augustus of Saxony Augustus (31 July 152611 February 1586) was Elector of Saxony from 1553 to 1586. First years Augustus was born in Freiberg, the youngest child and third (but second surviving) son of Henry IV, Duke of Saxony, and Catherine of Mecklenburg. He ...

. He attended Handelsschule (trade school) in Gotha and studied at the

University of Jena The University of Jena, officially the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (german: Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, abbreviated FSU, shortened form ''Uni Jena''), is a public research university located in Jena, Thuringia, Germany. The un ...

from 1565, mainly with

Cyriacus Lindemann Cyriacus ( el, Ἅγιος Κυριακός, fl. 303 AD), sometimes Anglicized as Cyriac, according to Christian tradition, is a Christian martyr who was killed in the Diocletianic Persecution. He is one of twenty-seven saints, most of them ma ...

. Evidence of his life can be found again in 1573, when he took his first ministry as the fifth Protestant pastor at St. Blasius Church in Friedrichroda. At the same time he held the post of superintendent of the Weimar adjuncts. He married Dorothea Lindemann, the only daughter of his teacher who had died in 1568. The couple had eight daughters, four of whom are mentioned by name in the preface to his Spiritual songs and hymns, and two sons who died early. His wife, Dorothea, née Lindemann, was a granddaughter of the Superintendent of Gotha, Friedrich Myconius, and a great niece of

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

. Schneegass died in Friedrichroda.

Work

A volume in the series of his publications, ''Briefe hervorragender Männer der Reformationszeit'' (Schmalkalden 1598) contains correspondence with prominent

reformers A reformer is someone who works for reform. Reformer may also refer to: *Catalytic reformer, in an oil refinery *Methane reformer, producing hydrogen * Steam reformer *Hydrogen reformer, extracting hydrogen *Methanol reformer, producing hydrogen f ...

including Luther and Caspar Cruciger. In 1595 he published the ''Weyhenacht- und Neujahrsmotetten von 4 Stimmen'' (Motets for four parts for Christmas and New Year), published in two volumes in Erfurt, containing his own compositions as well as other composers'. His most successful release was the release of ''73 geistliche Lieder'' (73 spiritual songs). Of his hymns, the song " In dir ist Freude in allem Leide" (published in 1598) on a melody by Giovanni Giacomo Gastoldi is in the Protestant hymnal '' Evangelisches Gesangbuch'' as EG 398. A familiar Christmas hymn is titled ''Das neugeborne Kindelein'' (The newborn little child). Johann Sebastian Bach wrote in 1724 the fourth

chorale cantata A chorale cantata is a church cantata based on a chorale—in this context a Lutheran chorale. It is principally from the German Baroque era. The organizing principle is the words and music of a Lutheran hymn. Usually a chorale cantata includes mult ...

of his second annual cycle, ''Ach Herr, mich armen Sünder'', BWV 135, on a hymn by Schneegass. For Christmas of that year, Bach composed a chorale cantata ''Das neugeborne Kindelein'', BWV 122, on a hymn with text and probably also the tune by Schneegass.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schneegass, Cyriakus 16th-century German Lutheran clergy German Lutheran hymnwriters 1546 births 1597 deaths University of Jena alumni 16th-century hymnwriters People from Gotha (district)