Conrad Paumann | |
|---|---|
 Paumann (later 19th? century engraving) | |
| Background information | |
| Born | c. 1410 Nuremberg, Germany |
| Died | January 24, 1473(1473-01-24) (aged 62–63) |
| Genres | Renaissance |
| Occupation(s) | Instrumentalist, composer |
| Instrument(s) | Pipe organ,lute |
Conrad Paumann (c. 1410 – January 24, 1473) was a Germanorganist,lutenist andcomposer of the earlyRenaissance. Born blind, he became one of the most talented musicians of the 15th century, and his performances created a sensation wherever he went. He is grouped among the composers known as theColorists.
He was born inNuremberg to a family of craftsmen. His musical ability must have become apparent early, for he received an excellent training with the support of aristocratic patrons. In 1447 he became the official town organist of Nuremberg, and the councilors even issued orders for him not to leave without their permission.
As rebellious as he was talented, Paumann left what was probably a stifling environment, traveling secretly toMunich in 1450 where he was immediately employed byDuke Albrecht III as court organist, who also gave him a house. Munich was officially his home for the remainder of his life, although he began to travel extensively.
While exact records of his travels do not remain, they were clearly extensive, and everywhere he went he was greeted with astonishment; his renown as a performer and composer grew.Milan andNaples both made him attractive job offers. His travels inItaly were probably around 1470, when the MilaneseSforza family was beginning to build their chapel into the most impressive singing and composition establishment in Europe:Josquin des Prez,Loyset Compère,Alexander Agricola and others were all there; some of them may have heard him play, and may have exchanged musical ideas with him. InMantua he was knighted; inLandshut he performed for the Burgundian dukePhilip the Good; inRatisbon he performed forEmperor Frederick III. During this time he also had numerous students. Unquestionably his influence had much to do with the subsequent development of a culture of organ-playing and composition in Germany, a tradition which culminated in the 18th century with the work ofJ.S. Bach.
Paumann's epitaph in theMunich Frauenkirche reads:
Anno 1473, on the evening of St. Paul's conversion died and was here buried the most ingenious master of all instruments and music, Cunrad Pauman [sic], knight, born blind at Nuremberg, God have mercy upon him.[1]
Paumann's gift, his disability, his instrument, and his influence are all reminiscent ofFrancesco Landini, the greatItalian composer of a hundred years before.
Paumann, being blind, never wrote down his music, and may have been animprovisor above all. He has been credited with inventing the system oftablature for the lute in Germany; while it cannot be proven, it seems reasonable both because of Paumann's influence, and because of the ease with which music can be dictated using tablature.
Most of his music is instrumental, and some of it considerably virtuosic. Only one vocal composition survives, atenorliedWiplich figur for three voices; stylistically it is so close to the contemporaryFranco-Flemish idiom that it follows that Paumann knew the music of the Franco-Flemish composers. Most likely he encountered it on his travels, for instance when he went to Milan.
HisFundamentum organisandi of 1452, an instruction manual for improvisation, was combined with theLochamer-Liederbuch of approximately the same date; the double source is housed in the Berlin Staatsbibliothek.
