Zacharias Hermann (Hymn-Writer)

Born: October 3, 1643 - Namslau, former principality of Wroclaw, Poland
Died: December 10, 1716 - Lissa, Greater Poland

Zacharias Hermann [Herrmann] was a Polish/German poet of sacred songs. In 1656 he enrolled at Gymnasium zu St. Maria Magdalena in Breslau. In Easter 1664, in order to study theology, he went to Jena, where many Silesians were studying at the time, and where he enjoyed a scholarship from the Rathe zu Wroclaw for five years. In 1667 he obtained his Master degrre in Jena. Very soon after his return to Breslau in 1669 he was elected Diacon in Lissa. In 1681 he became a pastor and inspector and in 1692 "General-Senior der vereinigten Kirchen der unveränderten Augsburger Confession in Großpolen" (General-Senior of the United Churches of the Unaltered Augsburg Confession (Lutheran Church) in Greater Poland). He was married twice; his second wife and a number of children also died before him; five children survived him.

As a song poet, Zacharias Hermann was very fertile; in a life of distress and sorrow and and tribulation he has made them and others comfort and refreshment; in his community, where they are first spread out on individual pages, they have "viel Tausend betrübter Seelen kräftigst getröstet und aufgerichtet" (many thousands of saddened souls vigorously comforted and and uplifted), as was said in his funeral sermon. They are to the liking of the younger Silesian poets, but they partly avoid the exuberance of the latter. His son, Daniel Hermann, who was last helper to his father, had after his death print a selection of 40 songs of his father: Frommer Christen seufzende Seele und singender Mund (Religious Christians sighing soul and singing mouth), Wroclaw and Leipzig in 1722. The most widespread of his Songs is: Was betrübst du dich, mein Herze, warum grämst du dich in mir? (at present in the Neustrelitzer Gesangbuch of 1875).

Source: Deutsche Biographie Website, English translation by Aryeh Oron (October 2018)
Contributed by Aryeh Oron (October 2018)

Texts of Bach Cantatas & Other Vocal Works

BWV 423

Chorale Texts used in Bach’s Vocal Works

Was betrübst du dich, mein Herze (c1690)

Links to other Sites

Deutsche Biographie: Herrmann, Zacharias [German]
Zachasrias, Hermann (CERL Thesaurus) [German]
Zacharias Herrman (Wikipedia) [Polish]

Bibliography

Gottlob Kluge: Hymnopoeographia silesiaca, zweite Decas, S. 121-138 (Koch, Geschichte d. Kirchenliedes, 3. Aufl. Bd. IV. S. 34-39
Carl Bertheau: "Herrmann, Zacharias" in: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie 12 (1880), pp. 220-221 [online version]