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Renaissance Music Online Lesson |
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William Byrd
(1543-1623) |
| Most
likely born in Lincolnshire in 1543, Byrd
was the foremost English composer of his
time. As a student of Thomas Tallis he was
exposed to music of the Chapel Royal and the
best of the English tradition. In 1563 he
was appointed organist of Lincoln Cathedral,
and by 1572 joined Tallis a gentleman of the
Chapel Royal where he shared organist duties
with Tallis. |
| Tallis and
Byrd were friends as well as fellow
composers and in 1575 they jointly published
Cantiones Sacrae, 34 motets dedicated
to Elizabeth I. |
| Byrd was
Catholic in a Protestant society.
However he had no problems with those above
him. Many of his patrons, such as the
Earl of Worcester, were Catholic as well and
when England momentarily returned to Roman
Church he had no shortage of music to
accompany the revival; he had been composing
music for underground catholic circles for
years. He composed for every branch of
music; Consort, Sacred, Keyboard music. He
left no instrument without a piece of his
music. Byrd's last publication was Psalmes,
Songs and Sonnets was in 1611, and he
died in 1623. |
| Byrd's music
would go on to affect and shape much of
later English music. |
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