Christoph Gottlieb Schröter

Christoph Gottlieb Schröter (10 August 1699 – 20 May 1782[1]), was a German composer and organist, who is best known for his contributions to the tangent piano, which in 1717 he invented a keyboard instrument whose strings were not plucked, but struck by hammers.

[2] Born in Hohenstein-Ernstthal, Schröter showed his musical ability as a choirboy in the Staatskapelle Dresden, becoming a student of Johann Christoph Schmidt.

While studying, his mother died, to which he went back to the Staatskapelle to study music and was recommended as a amanuensis to composer Antonio Lotti, which to him was a great honour.

[3][4] Schröter was later employed as a secretary and musical associate to an unknown man, who he would travel with throughout Germany, Netherlands and England.

He would reside in Minden until 1732 when he traveled to Nordhausen, where he would continue being an Organist at the St. Nikolai Church until his death in 1782.