Krebs, Johann Tobias (EN)

Krebs Johann Tobias, *7 July 1690 Heichelheim, †11 February 1762 Buttstädt, German composer and organist. He spent his youth in Weimar, where he attended Gymnasium and was preparing for the priesthood. In 1710, having changed his life plans, he became an organist (or cantor) in nearby Buttelstedt. At the same time, he studied harpsichord and composition in Weimar under J.G. Walther, and then, between 1711 and 1716, he studied under J.S. Bach. In 1711, he married Magdalena Susanna Falcke, with whom he had two sons – Johann Ludwig and Johann Tobias (1716–1782). In 1721, following his wife’s death, he moved to Buttstädt, where he remained for the rest of his life. He served as organist at St Michael’s Church [Michaeliskirche] and as a teacher at the church school. In 1723, he married Katharina Dorothea Beyer. From this marriage came his third son – Johann Carl (1724–1759). All of Johann Tobias Krebs’s sons later became pupils of J.S. Bach at St Thomas’s School [Thomaskirche] in Leipzig. Johann Tobias Krebs was a renowned organist and composer of sacred music; unfortunately, almost all of his vocal compositions have been lost. In Krebs’s surviving organ works (including the Prelude and Fugue in C major, the Trio in C minor, and chorale arrangements), the influence of the music of J.S. Bach and J.G. Walther is evident.