Thomas Tallis (circa 1505–23 November 1585) was an English composer. Tallis flourished as a church musician during the often stormy 16th century in England. He occupies a primary place in anthologies of English church music, and is considered among the best of its earliest composers.
Little is known about his early life, but there seems to be agreement that he was born around 1505, toward the close of the reign of Henry VII. His first known appointment to a musical position was as organist of Dover Priory, a Benedictine priory at Dover (now Dover College) in 1532. His career took him to London, then (probably in the autumn of 1538) to the Augustinian abbey of Holy Cross at Waltham, until the abbey was dissolved in 1540, then Canterbury Cathedral, and finally to court as Gentleman of the Chapel Royal in 1543, composing and performing for Henry VIII (until the king's death in 1547), Edward VI (1547-1553), Queen Mary (1553-1558), and Queen Elizabeth I (1558 until the composer's death in ...
Created by dipity
on Jan 24, 2008
Last updated: 01/24/08 at 05:41 AM
Update Sources
