Johann Erasmus Kindermann (1616-1655) was an organist and composer who lived in the imperial city of Nuremberg during the Thirty Years’ War. While the city was never under siege, the region surrounding it was devastated by years of warfare. In 1642 Kindermann published a collection of vocal music compositions titled Musicalische Friedens Seufftzer [Musical Pleas for Peace], including this piece, “Peace, where have you been so long.”