Leerzaame fabelen - Sweerts, Cornelis 1669-1742 (Amsterdam Strander, 1704)
Cornelis Sweerts (1669-1749) was a poet, songwriter, playwright and bookseller. His 'Inleiding tot de zang- en speelkunst' describes musical life in Amsterdam at the end of the 17th century. In it, he makes a plea for writing in the Dutch language and composing on Dutch texts (in reaction to French and Italian).
Together with Abraham Alewijn he is considered to be among the two most important songwriters of his time. They published a total of eight songbooks, which were reprinted many times. Their song texts were set to music mainly by the composers David Petersen, Nicolaas Ferdinand le Grand, Hendrik Anders and Servaes de Koninck.
Keywords: 18th Century (1701-1800); Moral education; Folklore; Amsterdam (Netherlands); Alewijn, A; Vollenhove, J; Rotgans, L