October 18 - Heinrich Schütz; Luca Marenzio (The Musical Birthday Series )

Heinrich Schütz (18 October [O.S. 8 October] 1585 – 6 November 1672) is generally acknowledge  as the most important German composer of Protestant church music before Bach.

Over the Alps

Heinrich Schütz, who sallied forth

And brought Italian style north,

No doubt raised the stolid eyebrows

Of the German Lutheran highbrows.

♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪ 

Luca Marenzio (18 October 1553 or 1554 – 22 August 1599) was a great an prolific Italian madrigalist. 

A double dactyl is a biographically inspired humorous poem with very strict structural rules.   

Here are links to two definitions for those who are curious.  The first from the  

Poetry Foundation is clearer but less accurate than the second, from Wikipedia.  Take 

your pick.  The classic statement is the book Jiggery-Pokery:  A Compendium of 

Double Dactyls by Anthony Hecht and John Hollander (New York, 1967).

Double Dactyl for LM

Higgledy-piggledy

Luca Marenzio,

Madrigal writer, the

Best of the best.

Could be chromatically

Overemotional,

Making sure nothing was

Left unexpressed.

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