Körner

1840s cover

1857 cover

History

This company was founded by Gotthilf Wilhelm Körner (1809-1865) in Erfurt in 1838, and was purchased by C.F. Peters in 1886. It specialized in organ music. Körner wanted to improve musical education and especially organ playing. He edited the series Orgelfreunde (1842- ) and published two important journals: for school teachers Euterpe (ein musikalisches Monatsblatt für Deutschlands Volksschullehrer) into which samples of Orgelfreund were inserted from 1844, and the organ journal Urania (Musik-Zeitschrift f. Orgelbau u. Orgelspiel insbesondere, sowie f. musikal. Theorie, kirchl., instruktive Gesang- u. Klavier-Musik) which was edited by A.W. Gottschalg. Urania was published for 42 years with its run ending in 1888.

The Deutsche Biographie entry summarizes Körner's achievement as follows: "Die Bedeutung Körners liegt im Anregen und Fördern eines damals abseits vom Musikleben liegenden Kunstzweiges und in den Bemühungen um die Verbesserung der musikalischen Bildung in jener Zeit."

Their Der Orgel-Virtuos series, which ran into the three-hundreds starting before 1845 and at least as late as 1857, contained 19th-century editions (possibly the first in centuries or first editions) of works by, among others, Johann Pachelbel. In 1855 they published the first volume of a possibly never continued "Gesammtausgabe" of Buxtehude's organ works; it waited some 20 years for Philipp Spitta to make another such effort.

Editions

Imprints, Addresses, Agencies

Imprints

• Verlag und Eigenthum von Gotth. Wilh. Körner
• Gotth. Wilh. Körner, Verlags-, Kirchen- und Schulbuchhandlung

Addresses

• Erfurt
• Leipzig

Plate Numbers

Körner's plate numbers appear in the following format: ###. Dates in italics are estimated.

Sources Consulted