Johann Christoph Rothe
Encyclopedia
Johann Christoph Rothe was a German baroque composer.
According to Ernst Ludwig Gerber, the court organist at Sondershausen in the time of Rothe's sons and grandsons, Rothe was born in Rosswein, Meissen
, where his father was kapellmeister in Roßwein and who gave him his early training. Though no kapellmeister by the name of Rothe is documented in Rosswein at the period. He initially served as falsettist and violinist in Coburg
, then in 1693 entered the court at Sondershausen. He died at Sondershausen
.
He is recorded to have composed many passions, Easter compositions, but his only surviving work is St Matthew Passion (1697), which is the earliest surviving example of the oratorio passion from Central Germany. It is not clear if Rothe was familiar with the precedents by Johann Sebastiani
(Königsberg
1672) and Johann Theile
(Lübeck
1673). The libretto is taken from the Halberstadt
composer Christian Clajus' passion of 1693, no longer extant. Rothe's sons and grandsons continued to serve as musicians at the Sondershausen court.
According to Ernst Ludwig Gerber, the court organist at Sondershausen in the time of Rothe's sons and grandsons, Rothe was born in Rosswein, Meissen
Meissen
Meissen is a town of approximately 30,000 about northwest of Dresden on both banks of the Elbe river in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. Meissen is the home of Meissen porcelain, the Albrechtsburg castle, the Gothic Meissen Cathedral and the Meissen Frauenkirche...
, where his father was kapellmeister in Roßwein and who gave him his early training. Though no kapellmeister by the name of Rothe is documented in Rosswein at the period. He initially served as falsettist and violinist in Coburg
Coburg
Coburg is a town located on the Itz River in Bavaria, Germany. Its 2005 population was 42,015. Long one of the Thuringian states of the Wettin line, it joined with Bavaria by popular vote in 1920...
, then in 1693 entered the court at Sondershausen. He died at Sondershausen
Sondershausen
Sondershausen is a town in Thuringia, Germany, capital of the Kyffhäuserkreis district, situated about 50 km north of Erfurt. On 1 December 2007, the former municipality Schernberg was incorporated by Sondershausen....
.
He is recorded to have composed many passions, Easter compositions, but his only surviving work is St Matthew Passion (1697), which is the earliest surviving example of the oratorio passion from Central Germany. It is not clear if Rothe was familiar with the precedents by Johann Sebastiani
Johann Sebastiani
Johann Sebastiani was a German baroque composer.Sebastiani was born in Weimar. He became Kantor at Königsberg cathedral in 1661, and court Kapellmeister 1663-1679. He died in Königsberg...
(Königsberg
Königsberg
Königsberg was the capital of East Prussia from the Late Middle Ages until 1945 as well as the northernmost and easternmost German city with 286,666 inhabitants . Due to the multicultural society in and around the city, there are several local names for it...
1672) and Johann Theile
Johann Theile
Johann Theile was a German composer of the Baroque era, famous for the opera Adam und Eva, Der erschaffene, gefallene und aufgerichtete Mensch, first performed in Hamburg on January 2, 1678.- Life :...
(Lübeck
Lübeck
The Hanseatic City of Lübeck is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. It was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League and, because of its Brick Gothic architectural heritage, is listed by UNESCO as a World...
1673). The libretto is taken from the Halberstadt
Halberstadt
Halberstadt is a town in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt and the capital of the district of Harz. It is located on the German Half-Timbered House Road and the Magdeburg–Thale railway....
composer Christian Clajus' passion of 1693, no longer extant. Rothe's sons and grandsons continued to serve as musicians at the Sondershausen court.