Nikolaus Herman
1500–1561 · Reformation
Lutheran cantor and teacher at Joachimsthal in Bohemia, who wrote hymns and tunes to teach the Gospel to children and households.
Life
Nikolaus Herman was born around 1500 at Altdorf near Nuremberg. From about 1518 he was cantor and teacher at the Latin school of Joachimsthal (Jáchymov) in Bohemia, a mining town. He embraced the Reformation early; a letter from Luther to him survives from 1524. In Joachimsthal he worked closely with Johannes Mathesius, the school's principal from 1532 and pastor from 1540, whose sermons he often turned into song. He retired in 1557 and died in 1561.
As a Hymn Writer
Herman wrote primarily for children and families. His Sonntagsevangelia (1560) set the Gospels for the Sundays of the year in song 'for children and Christian heads of households', and he wrote morning, evening and table hymns. His style is simple, cheerful and direct, close to folk song. Lutherans still sing his Christmas hymn 'Let All Together Praise Our God', his Easter hymns, and his deathbed hymn; he also composed tunes, among them NIKOLAUS ('Lobt Gott, ihr Christen').
In The Lutheran Hymnal and Lutheran Service Book (5)
- Praise God the Lord, Ye Sons of Men
- Yea, as I Live, Jehovah Saith
- The Radiant Sun Shines in the Skies
- The Sun's Last Beam of Light Is Gone
- When My Last Hour Is Close at Hand
Sources: Wikipedia, 'Nikolaus Herman'.