Carl Heinrich Graun
Frederick became king in 1740. He sent Graun to Italy to hire singers for the court opera. Graun returned to Berlin in March 1741. He was promoted to Kapellmeister. He was in charge of the music in the Berlin court. His job was writing stage music. In 1755, he wrote Der Tod Jesu (The Death of Jesus), a Passion cantata. The cantata was performed every year in Germany ever since.