Dulichius, Philippus (EN)

Dulichius, Dulichs, Deilich, Deulich, Teilich, Philippus, *18 December 1562 Chemnitz (Saxony), †24 March 1631 Szczecin, German composer. He probably received his early musical education from Andreas Gottardt, cantor of St. Jacob’s Church in Chemnitz. From 1579, he studied at the University of Leipzig, then in Wittenberg. Between 1587 and 1630, he was cantor of the ducal Pedagogium (College of Education) in Szczecin. In addition to teaching music to secondary school students, his duties included directing music at the now defunct St. Mary’s Church in Szczecin and at the princely courts of John Frederick, Bogislaw XIII, and Philip II. In 1591, he married the daughter of a Szczecin merchant – Katharina Fuchs, who died in 1617. In 1604–05, he spent several months in Gdańsk, where he unsuccessfully applied for the position of cantor at St. Mary’s Church as the successor to Nicolaus Zangius, presenting his work. He then returned to Szczecin, where he resumed his previous duties and continued to serve at the local ducal court until 1630. In 1620, he married Judith Ebel. He was a composer who was already highly regarded during his lifetime, sometimes compared to Orlando di Lasso.

Almost all of Dulichius’s works (about 240 pieces) are motets, mainly to Latin texts, less often to German texts, in the traditional a capella style. They are clearly influenced by Dutch polyphony and the work of Orlando di Lasso. In most of his 8-voice works and in some 7-voice works, the composer also uses the Venetian polychoral technique. Dulichius did not introduce newer techniques, already quite common in German sacred music of the first decades of the 17th century, into his works. His work is strongly rooted in 16th-century models, which makes his late compositions particularly conservative.

Literature: R. Schwartz Ein pommerscher Lassus, “Monatsschrift für Gottes-dienst und kirchliche Kunst” I, 1896; R. Schwartz Zum Stand der Dulichius-Forschung, “Allgemeine Musikzeitung” VII, 1901; H.J. Moser Die mehrstimmige Vertonung des Evangeliums, part 1, Leipzig 1931; G. Kittler Philippus Dulichius, “Monatsblätter der Gesellschaft für pommersche Geschichte und Altertumskunde” LI, 1937; C.J. Westendorf Glareanus’„Dodecachordon” in German Theory and Practice. An Expression of Confessionalism, “Current Musicology” XXXVII/XXXVIII, 1984; T. Jasiński Contrapunctus fractus w twórczości wokalnej kompozytorów niemieckich pierwszej połowy XVII wieku, “Muzyka” XXXIII, 1988; M. Ruhnke Vorbereitung der Edition eines Jahrgangs Evangelien-Motetten von Philippus Dulichius, “Musik des Ostens” XII, ed. H. Unverricht, Kassel 1992; M. Ruhnke Glareans lydischer und hypolydischer Modus bei Dulichius, in: Festschrift Hubert Unverricht zum 65. Geburtstag, ed. K.H. Schlager, Tutzing 1992; O. von Steuber Ein Brief von Philipp Dulichius an den Bürgermeister von Stralsund, “Schütz-Jahrbuch” XX, 1998; O. von Steuber Philipp Dulichius: Leben und Werk. Mit thematischem Werkverzeichnis, Kassel 2001; Kompozytorzy szczecińscy, vol. 1, eds. E. Kus, M. Szczęsny and E. Włodarczyk, Szczecin 2003; K.W. Niemöller Die Motetten über Wahlsprüche von Philipp Dulichius (um 1600) und die Symbola-Kompositionen des 16. Jahrhunderts im Ostseeraum, w: Deutsch-Baltische musikalische Beziehungen: Geschichte, Gegenwart, Zukunft, Sinzig 2003; O. von Steuber Philippus Dulichius (1562–1631). Ein bedeutender Komponist aus Chemnitz, “Mitteilungen des Chemnitzer Geschichtsvereins” LXXIV, 2004; O. von Steuber Philipp Dulichius: Kantor an St. Marien und am Fürstlichen Pädagogium in Stettin von 1587–1630, “Schütz-Jahrbuch” XXVII, 2005; Philipp Dulichius: Musik, Kultur und Lebenswelten zwischen Sachsen und Pommern, ed. M. Řezník, 2014.