Svelink, Jan Petersson

Born in the family of organist Peter Swibbertson (Swybbertszoon). Soon the family moved to Amsterdam, where his father took the post of organist of the central city church of Oude Kerk . Svelink got his first music and organ lessons from his father. From the second half of the 1570s (the first accurate evidence dates back to 1580) and until the end of his days, never once going abroad, he served as an organist in the same Audi Kirk. Since the first known publication of his writings (1594), he used only the name of his mother (Svelink).

He was famous as a virtuoso of clavier clavier improvisation , and was nicknamed for this “Amsterdam Orpheus ”. The fame of Svelinka the teacher spread throughout Northern Europe, was especially great in Germany. Among his students are the founders of the North German organ school Michael Pretorius , Samuel Scheidt , Heinrich Scheidemann , Peter Hasse , Andreas Duben and others.

Svelink died for an unknown reason on October 16, 1621 ^[5] and was buried in Oude Kerk. A wife and five out of six children survived him; the eldest of them, Dirk Janson , succeeded his father as organist Aude Kerk.

In the history of music, Svelinka’s work is usually regarded as transitional from the Renaissance to the Baroque era. In his vocal music, the influence of the old Dutch masters , the French polyphonic chanson , the Italian madrigalists is clearly. New baroque trends are visible in music written for organ and harpsichord.

In the vocal heritage of Svelinka, the central place is played by the polyphonic (for 4-8 votes) music for the entire Psalter (in French poetic translation). This grandiose four-volume collection ( 1604 , 1613, 1614, 1621) is heterogeneous in terms of style: researchers find here the features of motet , madrigal and even villanella . All polyphonic plays are based on cantus firmus , a simple melody of the corresponding psalm from the Geneva Psalms . “Sacred songs” (“ Cantiones sacrae ”, 1619) is a rather traditional collection (37) of five-voice motets for Latin texts (mainly from the Psalter, but also the New Testament Magnificat and popular hymnographic ones, for example, Te Deum and Regina caeli ), while baroque ”- with the basso continuo part . Svelink also wrote in the genres of the French polyphonic song (more than 30 chansons in the collections of 1594 and 1612) and the Italian madrigal (19 plays with 3-6 voices).

In instrumental music (for organ and harpsichord), Svelink most of all worked in the genres of fantasy (only 20, of which 6 were “in the manner of an echo”) and toccata (15). The most popular fantasy is No. 1 in d SwWV 258 (the so-called Chromatic Fantasy) and fantasy No. 3 in g (other names are Dorian Fantasy and Fantasia contraria). In "Echo-fantasies" masterfully used the register and timbre capabilities of the body. The instrumental heritage also includes choral preludes (compositions of predominantly Protestant spiritual songs, including those from the Geneva Psalter), variations (11, including three with special “thematic” titles - “Ballo del granduca”, “Engelsche fortuyn” and “More palatino”) , ricercars , pavans . A number of works for organ and harpsichord, preserved anonymously, modern scholars (based on stylistic analysis) are attributed as works of Svelinka.

The most authoritative seven-volume edition of the works of Svelink edited by Gustav Leonhardt and others. The abbreviation “SwWV” is used to identify the work on this edition.

Opera omnia, edd. Gustav Leonhardt, Alfons Annegarn, Frits Noske et al. Amsterdam, 1966-90.

• v. 1 (1974) Instrumental works: fasc. 1 . Keyboard works. Fantasias and toccatas; fasc. 2 . Keyboard works. Settings of sacred melodies; fasc. 3 . Keyboard works. Settings of secular melodies and dances. Works for lute
• v. 2 (1965?) The first Book of Psalms
• v. 3 (1966) The second Book of Psalms
• v. 4 (1981) The third Book of Psalms
• v. 5 (1988) The fourth and last Book of Psalms. Early versions of Psalms 3 and 10
• v. 6 (1979) Cantiones sacrae
• v. 7 (1990) The secular vocal works and miscellanea (fasc. 1-2)

• Seiffert M. J. P. Sweelinck und seine directen deutschen Schüler. Leipzig: Druck von Breitkopf & Härtel, 1891.
• Tusler RL The organ music of Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck. Bilthoven: AB Creyghton, 1958.
• Noske F. Sweelinck. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1990.
• Dirksen P. The keyboard music of Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck. Its style, significance and influence. Utrecht: Koninklijke Vereniging voor Nederlandse Muziekgeschiedenis, 1997. ISBN 90-6375-159-1 .
• Sweelinck Studies, ed. by Pieter Dirksen // Proceedings of the Sweelinck Symposium, Utrecht 1999. Utrecht: STIMU, Foundation for Historical Performance Practice, 2002. X, 256 p. ISBN 90-72786-09-2 .

• Klavierwerk / Harlekijn, reprint - Philips (app. 1981; collection of clavier music on 4 CDs performed by Ton Coopman ) ^[6]
• The choral works of Sweelinck / Radio Nederland - BFO (recorded 1986-1987, collection of choral music on 3 CDs; choirmasters William Christie , Ton Coopman, Peter Phillips , Philip Herrevege and others) ^[7]
• Het Sweelinck Monument / Glossa (app. 2010-14, 23 CDs; 254 vocal compositions Svelinka from the ensemble Gesualdo Consort Amsterdam under the control of Harry van der Kampa on 17 CDs; all clavier compositions on 6 CDs, various performers) ^{[8 ]}

• Svelink, Jan Petersson: sheet music at International Music Score Library Project
• Chromatic Fantasy (Juergen Kursawa)
• Cantiones sacrae (sample) (The Choir of Clare College, Cambridge)
• Chantez à Dieu (Psalm 96) (Vocaal Kwartet Ruurlo)
• Chanson Depuis le jour (Gesualdo Consort Amsterdam)