Telemann about Magdeburg
"I was born in Magdeburg on March 14, 1681. My father, Henricus, was a preacher there at the Church of the Holy Spirit and died 1685.
In the elementary schools I learned the usual things: reading, writing, catechism and some Latin; but then I eventually took up playing on my own the violin, flute and zither and entertained my friends with this music without even knowing anything about notes on a page. When I was ten, I began attending the Gymnasium where I received a higher level of instruction from the cantor, Mr. Benedicto Christiani, all the way to the highest level classes taught by the rector, Anton Werner Cuno, and finally also by Mr. N. Müller, the rector at the Cathedral Gymnasium. The latter was responsible for instilling in me my love for German poetry and literature. In music I had learned so much in only a few weeks that the cantor let me be his substitute for singing classes even though many in the class were much better than I."
