Station 11 - St. Nicholas Church

The late Gothic Nikolaikirche, the interior of which was classicised in 1790, is one of the two surviving churches in Leipzig, for the sacred music of which Johann Sebastian Bach was responsible. Bach began his employment in the city in the Nikolaikirche with the direction of a cantata in the service on 30th May 1723. The Nikolaikirche's music had long since been closely connected to that of the Thomaskirche (St. Thomas Church). Although the Nikolaikirche was Leipzig's principal parish church, it only employed an organist, not a cantor. Bach's position of Thomaskantor (Cantor of St. Thomas) and Director musices of the city required him to organise the musical contribution to the worship in all four of Leipzig's main churches: Nikolaikirche, Thomaskirche, Neue Kirche St Matthäi (New Church of St. Matthäi) and Peterskirche (St. Peter's). In fact, the Nikolaikirche was the scene of more cantata performances under Bach's direction than any of the other churches. In addition, the Nikolaikirche witnessed the first performance of two of Bach's greatest masterpieces: the St. John Passion in 1724 and the Christmas Oratorio over the festive period in 1734/35.

Of the organists employed by the Nikolaikirche before Bach's time, two are of particular note: Johann Rosenmüller (1619-1684) and Adam Krieger (1634-1666). The current organ is based on the instrument built by Friedrich Ladegast in 1862, which played a significant role in the inclination towards a rather romantic interpretation of Bach's organ works in the latter half of the 19th century. The Ladegast organ was expanded by the Frankfurt-on-the-Oder firm, Wilhelm Sauer, in 1902-03. The new instrument built by Hermann Eule in Bautzen in 2002-03 is based on the original, integrating much of the existing historical substance.

As a result of the "Prayers for Peace", held to this day every Monday at 5pm, the Nikolaikirche became the origin of the Peaceful Revolution in 1989 and, subsequently, an emblem of German reunification.

Nikolaikirche, Nikolaikirchhof 3, 04109 Leipzig, Tel. 0341/ 1245380
Öffnungszeiten: Mo–Sa 10–18 Uhr, So zu den Gottesdiensten 9.30, 11.15 und 17 Uhr
Photograph: Werner Schneider

Internet: www.nikolaikirche-leipzig.de
Leipziger Nikolaikirche
Johann Sebastian Bach