Telemann, Georg Philipp, << TAY luh `mahn,` gay AWRK FEE lihp >> (1681-1767), was perhaps the most famous German composer of his day. Telemann wrote thousands of compositions in the popular forms of the 1700’s. He wrote more than 1,000 cantatas as well as operas, concertos, oratorios, and chamber music. His music forms an important link between the Baroque style of George Frideric Handel and the Classical style of Joseph Haydn.
Telemann’s works show an understanding of the national styles of his time, including folk music. He was also concerned with writing music suitable for performance by amateurs. His best-known works include the comic opera Pimpinone (1725), the religious cantata cycle Harmonischer Gottes-Dienst (1725-1726), and instrumental pieces called Musique de Table (1733). His music for the recorder is especially popular today.
Telemann was born in Magdeburg on March 14, 1681, and studied in Leipzig. In 1721, he became the music director for the five main churches in Hamburg, where he spent the rest of his life. From 1722 to 1738, he served as director of the Hamburg Opera. He died on June 25, 1767.
