Shakespeare and Church Musicians
In Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” we find Juliet in a conundrum. The problem? Romeo, the love of her life, is a Montague — the family that is warring with her family, the Capulets. Juliet determines (in a soliloquy no less) that the name Montague is the issue, not Romeo himself.
What’s in a name? that which [...]
Johann Walter – First Lutheran Kantor
On April 24 (based on the Calendar of Commemorations for Lutheran Service Book), the church remembers Johann Walter – the first Lutheran kantor. Here is a brief biography from the LCMS Commission on Worship page.
Johann Walter, Kantor
Johann Walter (1496-1570) began service at the age of 21 as a composer and bass singer in [...]
The Kantor "Attitude"
It was with some gladness that I came across the following selection in Key Words in Music edited by Carl Schalk.
“. . . The Lutheran cantor viewed the use of his artistic gifts primarily as a summons from God to preach the Gospel. He did not consider himself an individual artist who was to [...]
So What Does a Kantor Do?
When I did a Google search to see how others defined a “Kantor” or “Cantor”, I didn’t find too much. I found the obvious — who were Kantors, but not what they did. Johann Walter was the first Lutheran Kantor. J.S. Bach is a familiar name.
One resource that was enlightening was from [...]
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