BuxWV 157 Manuscript

A manuscript in the Institute für Kirchenmusik, Berlin, contained the only known early source of the Preludium in F Major, BuxWV 157, by Dietrich Buxtehude. However, it was lost in World War II, and we are left with a few 19th-century critical editions which had access to this manuscript.

Description

According to Philipp Spitta, the manuscript could be dated to the beginning of the eighteenth century and contained only this piece written on the first three pages.

It is possible that this manuscript originated from the central-German Pachelbel circle, as the IfK contained many such manuscripts.

References

Belotti, Michael (editor), Dietrich Buxtehude: The Collected Works. Vol. 15: Preludes, Toccatas, and Ciacconas for Organ (Pedaliter): Commentary. New York: The Broude Trust, 1998. 19.