Leonhard Kleber

Full biography Leonhard Kleber

Leonhard Kleber was a German composer and organist who lived during the Renaissance period, born around 1495, and died in or after 1556. He served as an organist at the court of Bavarian Dukes in Landshut and was also the organist at the Augsburg Cathedral. Unfortunately, little information is available about his life and works, and very few of his compositions have survived to date.

One of his surviving works is a collection of organ tablatures known as the "Kleber Tabulatur". This collection contains 12 pieces and is preserved in the Library of the Conservatory of Music in Vienna, Austria. Interestingly, a few pieces from this tablature were included in the Buxheimer Orgelbuch, a well-known collection of organ music from the Renaissance period.

Kleber's compositions, as well as his other contributions to music, have been overshadowed by other composers of his time. Nevertheless, he is recognized as one of the notable composers and arrangers of the Roman Catholic hymn, "O sanctissima", which is still well-known today. He arranged this hymn alongside other notable composers like Heinrich Isaac and Ludwig Senfl, among others.

Overall, not much is known about Leonhard Kleber's life and works. However, his contributions to music, including his arrangements of "O sanctissima", have earned him a place in the history of Renaissance music.