Franz Tunder (1614-1667)
The German composer and organist Franz Tunder was born and died in Lübeck. From 1632 to 1641 he worked as chief organist in Holstein-Gottorf castle for Frederick III of Holstein-Gottorp, after which he followed Peter Hasse der Ältere as organist at the Church of St. Mary in Lübeck. Tunder there introduced the Abendmusiken tradition: concerts for the town’s merchants.
Tunder serves as the link between early German Baroque, in which strong Venetian influences can be heard, and the high baroque that eventually culminated in the Johann Sebastian Bach’s music. Tunder was one of the pioneers of the cantata. It is likely that he studied in Florence with Frescobaldi; his predecessor Hecke Frescobaldi Lauer knew Frescobaldi personally.