Music at German Courts 1715-1760

What was musical life at German courts really like during the eighteenth century? Were musical ensembles as diverse as the Holy Roman Empire's kaleidoscopic political landscape? Through a series of individual case studies contributed by leading scholars from Germany Poland the United States Canada and Australia this book investigates the realities of musical life at fifteen German courts of varied size (ranging from kingdoms to principalities) religious denomination and geographical location. Significant shifts that occurred in the artistic priorities of each court are presented through a series of snapshots- in effect core sample years - which highlight both individual and shared patterns of development and decline. What emerges from the wealth of primary source material examined in this volume is an in-depth picture of music-making within the daily life of individual courts featuring a cast of music directors instrumentalists and vocalists together with numerous support staff drawn from across Europe. Music at German Courts serves to illustrate the extraordinary diversity of eighteenth-century German court music establishments without losing sight of what these Kapellen had in common.