Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer

Johann Caspar Ferdinand Fischer (some authorities use the spelling Johann Kaspar Ferdinand Fischer) (c.1656 – August 27, 1746) was a German Baroque composer. Johann Nikolaus Forkel ranked Fischer as one of the best composers for keyboard of his day; however, partly due to the rarity of surviving copies of his music, his music is rarely heard today.

Fischer seems to have been of Bohemian origin, possibly born at Schönfeld, but details about his life are sketchy. Fischer was baptized and spent his youth in Schlackenwerth, north-west Bohemia.

The first record of his existence is found in the mid-1690s: by 1695 he was Kapellmeister to Ludwig Wilhelm of Baden, and he may have remained with the court until his death in Rastatt.

Much of Fischer's music shows the influence of the French Baroque style, exemplified by Jean Baptiste Lully, and he was responsible for bringing the French influence to German music. Fischer's harpsichord suites updated the standard Froberger model (Allemande - Courante - Sarabande - Gigue); he was also one of the first composers to apply the principles of the orchestral suite to the harpsichord, replacing the standard French ouverture with an unmeasured prelude. Both Bach and Handel knew Fischer's work and sometimes borrowed from it.

Many compositions by Fischer were published during his lifetime. These published pieces include:

Evidence exists of numerous lost works, among them an opera in Italian style, miscellaneous chamber works, court music and keyboard pieces.