Dietrich Buxtehude was a German-Danish organist and
composer of the Baroque period. The bulk of Buxtehude's
work consists of vocal music, which covers a wide
variety of styles and organ works, which concentrate
mostly on chorale settings and large-scale sectional
forms. The nineteen organ praeludia (or preludes) form
the core of Buxtehude's work and are ultimately
considered his most important contributions to the
music literature of the seventeenth century. They are
sectional compositions that ...(+)
Dietrich Buxtehude was a German-Danish organist and
composer of the Baroque period. The bulk of Buxtehude's
work consists of vocal music, which covers a wide
variety of styles and organ works, which concentrate
mostly on chorale settings and large-scale sectional
forms. The nineteen organ praeludia (or preludes) form
the core of Buxtehude's work and are ultimately
considered his most important contributions to the
music literature of the seventeenth century. They are
sectional compositions that alternate between free
improvisation and strict counterpoint. They are usually
either fugues or pieces written in fugal manner; all
make heavy use of pedal and are idiomatic to the
organ.
Buxtehude inspired Bach who visited him around 1705 and
walked about 300 km just to see him play. Furthermore,
Händel visited him in 1703, too. Buxtehude played the
organ in the "Marienkirche" (Church of Mary:-) in
Lübeck, Northern-Germany.