Johannes Eccard

Eccard was active in the Weimar court, Munich, Muhlhausen, Augsburg, Konigsberg, Ansbach and Brandenburg. He was a student of Burck and Lassus. The substantial portion of his compositional output were Lutheran chorales but he also wrote motets, lieder, occasional pieces, odes and sacred orders. Eccard contributed to two different manners of chorale development: 1. The melody being carried by the highest part (rather than the tenor) and harmonized from there. 2. Liberated polyphony. His harmonies were deceptive in that they gave the impression of being polyphonic. If the inner parts were difficult, the melodies were written in such a manner that the congregation could sing along with the melodic line (the upper voice). Eccard was capable of realizing a note-for-word correspondence, and, feeling. Influentially Eccard's works were considered the best of unaccompanied singing as late as the 19th century. ~ Keith Johnson