Schein, Johann Hermann

Schein, Johann Hermann

(born Jan. 20, 1586, Grünhain, Saxony—died Nov. 19, 1630, Leipzig) German composer. After singing as a boy in the chapel of the elector of Saxony, he studied music at the University of Leipzig. In 1616 he became cantor of St. Thomas Church in Leipzig, the post later held by Johann Sebastian Bach. In this capacity, he was an important teacher, became friends with Samuel Scheidt and Heinrich Schütz, and wrote sacred works that combined the vocal lyricism of Italian music with the Northern contrapuntal style. His Banchetto musicale (1617) is a collection of dances, perhaps the first in which dances are gathered into unified suites, with common thematic motifs. His sacred vocal works include Opella nova (1618–26) and the hymn collection Cantional (1627).