Johann Crüger (9 April 1598 – 23 February 1662) was a German composer of well-knownhymns. He was also the editor of the most widely usedLutheranhymnal of the 17th century,Praxis pietatis melica.
Crüger was born in Groß Breesen (now part ofGuben) as the son of aninnkeeper, Georg Crüger.[1] He was an ethnicSorb, baptized as Jan Krygar.[2]
He studied at the nearbyLateinschule (then located in Guben) until 1613, and that school's teaching program included music and singing.[1]
He then traveled toSorau andBreslau for further education, and finally toRegensburg, where he received musical training from Paulus Homberger (1560–1634).[1] In 1615 he traveled to Berlin, where he studied theology at theBerlinisches Gymnasium zum Grauen Kloster. In 1616 he was engaged as a house tutor to thevon Blumenthal family; his pupils includedJoachim Friedrich von Blumenthal. From 1620 he studied theology at theUniversity of Wittenberg and trained himself further in music through private study.[1]
From 1622 to his death, a period of 40 years, he was simultaneously a teacher at thegymnasiumZum Grauen Kloster andcantor of theNikolaikirche in Berlin.[1]
Crüger composed numerous concert works and wrote extensively on music education. In 1643 he became acquainted with the famous hymn writerPaul Gerhardt, for whom he wrote the music for various hymns, including "Wie soll ich dich empfangen". In 1647 he edited the most important German Lutheran hymnal of the 17th century,Praxis pietatis melica, which appeared in many more editions.[1]
Among the hymns for which he composed music is Johann Franck's "Du, o schönes Weltgebäude" (You, o beautiful building of the world). It is no longer in practical use, but onestanza, "Komm, o Tod, du Schlafes Bruder" (Come, O death, to sleep a brother), was prominently used in Bach's solo cantataIch will den Kreuzstab gerne tragen, BWV 56. He composed the tune for Rinkart's "Nun danket alle Gott", and for Franck's "Jesu, meine Freude", which Bach used fora motet of the same name.
In 1628, he married the widow of a city councilman. During theThirty Years' War, Crüger and his family endured many hardships including hunger.[3] He fell ill withplague, and almost died of that disease, losing five children and his wife in 1636. In 1637, having recovered from the disease, he got married a second time, to the 17-year-old daughter of an innkeeper, with whom he had fourteen children, most of whom died at a young age.[3] One of his daughters married the court painterMichael Conrad Hirt, who made a portrait of Crüger in 1663.[1] Crüger died in Berlin.
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