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Stephan Mahu (Composer)
Born: probably between 1480 and 1490 - Ort (?)
Died: 1541? - Ort (?)
Stephan Mahu [Machu] was a German composer, who flourished in the earlier part of the 16th century. He is said to have been a singer in the chapel of the Archduke Ferdinand at Vienna, though this is only a oonjecture from the fact of some of his compositions being received into Joanelli's Thesaurus of 1568. His works appeared only in collections. Ambros and others speak highly of a set of Lamentations a 4-6, which appeared in Joanelli, and have since been republished by Commer. Mahu's other works consist chiefly of a few contrapuntal settings a 4 and 5 of German songs, sacred and seoular, in Ott, Georg Rhau and Foster's collections. Eitner and Amhros judged his secular songs very favourably. The former describes a setting of Ach hilf mich Laid und sehnlich Klag, a 5, as excellent both in technique and expression. He also gives in shortened notes a characteristic setting of an old Tanzlied in triple time, Es ging em wolbezogner Knecht. Ott's Liederbuch of 1544, reprinted in 1872, oontains four songs by Mahu, three sacred and one secular. From the text of one of the sacred songs, Lobt Gott ihr Christen all, being a fierce diatribe against Roman abuses, as well as. from the fact of Mahu having contributed a setting a 5 of Martin Luther's Ein' feste Burg, to Rhau's Geistliche Gesange (1544), we may conolude that Mahu was more Lutheran in his sympathies than Roman.
Source: Grove’s Dictionary of Music and Musicians (1952 Edition, by J.R. Milne)
Contributed by Aryeh Oron (February 2006)
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Use of Chorale Melodies in his works |
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Title |
Chorale Melody |
Year |
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Christ ist erstanden , Setting for 5 voices |
Christ ist erstanden |
1544 |
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