Joannes Florentius a Kempis
Encyclopedia
Joannes Florentius a Kempis (1635 after 1711) was a Baroque composer
from the Southern Netherlands
.
Joannes Florentius was the fifth son of the probably more famous Nicolaes a Kempis
. Like his father, Joannes Florentius was also a composer
and an organist
. Between 1670 and 1672, he succeeded to his father’s position as an organist at the St. Michael and Gudula Cathedral
in Brussels. Before that, he had a similar position at the ‘Chapel of Our Lady’ Church in Brussels
.
His collection of Cantiones Natalitiae for five voices was published in 1657. Similar Christmas carols by the Brussels composers Guillielmus Borremans and Gaspar de Verlit
had already been published in 1660. Furthermore, a Kempis published a mass
, a sequence
Victimae paschalis en twelve sonata
s for violin
, viola da gamba and double bass
. A polychoral Canticle of Zachary
has been ascribed to Guillaume a Kempis.
Baroque music
Baroque music describes a style of Western Classical music approximately extending from 1600 to 1760. This era follows the Renaissance and was followed in turn by the Classical era...
from the Southern Netherlands
Southern Netherlands
Southern Netherlands were a part of the Low Countries controlled by Spain , Austria and annexed by France...
.
Joannes Florentius was the fifth son of the probably more famous Nicolaes a Kempis
Nicolaus à Kempis
Nicolaus à Kempis was a composer active in Brussels in the middle of the 17th century.Not much is known about this oddly-named man. He was born around 1600, but it is unknown where. Some musicologists think that he came from northern Italy, perhaps from Florence...
. Like his father, Joannes Florentius was also a composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
and an organist
Organist
An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists...
. Between 1670 and 1672, he succeeded to his father’s position as an organist at the St. Michael and Gudula Cathedral
St. Michael and Gudula Cathedral
The St. Michael and St. Gudula Cathedral is a Roman Catholic church at the Treurenberg hill in Brussels, Belgium. In French, it is called Cathédrale Saints-Michel-et-Gudule and in Dutch Sint-Michiels- en Sint-Goedelekathedraal, usually shortened to "Sint-Goedele".In 1047, Lambert II, Count of...
in Brussels. Before that, he had a similar position at the ‘Chapel of Our Lady’ Church in Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
.
His collection of Cantiones Natalitiae for five voices was published in 1657. Similar Christmas carols by the Brussels composers Guillielmus Borremans and Gaspar de Verlit
Gaspar de Verlit
Gaspar de Verlit or Gaspar Verlit was a Baroque composer, first chorister and later also a singer at the court chapel in Brussels, choirmaster at St.Vincent’s Church in Soignies and singing master at St. Nicolas Church in Brussels. In 1658, he became chaplain at the court chapel. He published two...
had already been published in 1660. Furthermore, a Kempis published a mass
Mass
Mass can be defined as a quantitive measure of the resistance an object has to change in its velocity.In physics, mass commonly refers to any of the following three properties of matter, which have been shown experimentally to be equivalent:...
, a sequence
Sequence
In mathematics, a sequence is an ordered list of objects . Like a set, it contains members , and the number of terms is called the length of the sequence. Unlike a set, order matters, and exactly the same elements can appear multiple times at different positions in the sequence...
Victimae paschalis en twelve sonata
Sonata
Sonata , in music, literally means a piece played as opposed to a cantata , a piece sung. The term, being vague, naturally evolved through the history of music, designating a variety of forms prior to the Classical era...
s for violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
, viola da gamba and double bass
Double bass
The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
. A polychoral Canticle of Zachary
Benedictus (Song of Zechariah)
The Benedictus , given in Gospel of , is one of the three canticles in the opening chapters of this Gospel. The Benedictus was the song of thanksgiving uttered by Zechariah on the occasion of the birth of his son, John the Baptist.The whole canticle naturally falls into two parts...
has been ascribed to Guillaume a Kempis.
Sources
- The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, London, 2001
- Collegiumamisfurtense about the Cantiones Natalitiae, giving the context of the repertoire, mentioning also the Cantiones by a Kempis