Biography
Johann Kuhnau combined the roles of composer, keyboardist, music theorist, scholar, writer, and lawyer, earning particular distinction through his keyboard compositions. He held the post of Kantor at Leipzig’s Thomasschule ahead of Bach, reaching that appointment in 1701 after an early display of musical talent led to work as a church musician and further musical studies. Alongside these activities he maintained a thriving scholarly life and a successful legal practice. His literary output included a satirical novel together with numerous translations of French and Italian works into German, all while he sustained a contented family life. Declining health, falling standards among his singers, and competition from Telemann overshadowed his final years. He is recalled as one of the last Kantors whose command of several scholarly fields extended well beyond music alone. The pieces that survive belong to two groups—keyboard music and sacred music—while every secular vocal work has disappeared.
Singles