Composers Datebook
Thomas Tallis (c. 1505 – 23 November 1585) was an English composer who occupies a primary place in anthologies of English choral musi and with William Byrd, considered the leading composer of the English Renaissance. Tallis is one of England's greatest composers, and he is honoured for his original voice in English musicianship.
No contemporaneous portrait of Tallis survives; the one painted by Gerard Vandergucht dates from 150 years after Tallis died, and there is no reason to suppose that it is a fair likeness. In a rare existing copy of his blackletter signature, he spelled his name "Tallys".
His works include Tallis's Canon ('Glory to thee my God this night'), the antiphonal Spem in alium non habui (English: "I have never put my hope in any other...") for 40-part Renaissance motet, composed in c. 1556/1570 for eight choirs of five voices each, and a collection of 34 motets, Canioness sacarae, of which 16 are Tallis and 18 by Byrd. Tallis was one of the earliest composers to write for the Anglican liturgy.
Early Life
Little is known about Thomas Tallis's early life. He was born in the early 16th century toward the end of Henry VII's reign. The name "Tallis" is derived from the French word taillis, which means a "thicket." There are suggestions that he was a child of the chapel (boy chorister) of the Chapel Royal, the same singing establishment which he joined as an adult.
Tallis's first known musical appointment was in 1532 as organist of Dover Priory (now Dover College), a Benedictine priory in Kent. His career took him to London, then to Waltham Abbey in the autumn of 1538, a large Augustinian monastery in Essex which was dissolved in 1540. He was paid off and acquired a book about music that contained a treatise by Leonel Power which prohibits consecutive unisons, fifths, and octaves.
Composer of the English Renaissance
Thomas Tallis (c. 1505 – 23 November 1585) was an English composer who occupies a primary place in anthologies of English choral musi and with William Byrd, considered the leading composer of the English Renaissance. Tallis is one of England's greatest composers, and he is honoured for his original voice in English musicianship.
No contemporaneous portrait of Tallis survives; the one painted by Gerard Vandergucht dates from 150 years after Tallis died, and there is no reason to suppose that it is a fair likeness. In a rare existing copy of his blackletter signature, he spelled his name "Tallys".
His works include Tallis's Canon ('Glory to thee my God this night'), the antiphonal Spem in alium non habui (English: "I have never put my hope in any other...") for 40-part Renaissance motet, composed in c. 1556/1570 for eight choirs of five voices each, and a collection of 34 motets, Canioness sacarae, of which 16 are Tallis and 18 by Byrd. Tallis was one of the earliest composers to write for the Anglican liturgy.
Early Life
Little is known about Thomas Tallis's early life. He was born in the early 16th century toward the end of Henry VII's reign. The name "Tallis" is derived from the French word taillis, which means a "thicket." There are suggestions that he was a child of the chapel (boy chorister) of the Chapel Royal, the same singing establishment which he joined as an adult.
Tallis's first known musical appointment was in 1532 as organist of Dover Priory (now Dover College), a Benedictine priory in Kent. His career took him to London, then to Waltham Abbey in the autumn of 1538, a large Augustinian monastery in Essex which was dissolved in 1540. He was paid off and acquired a book about music that contained a treatise by Leonel Power which prohibits consecutive unisons, fifths, and octaves.
Thomas Tallis' Spem in Alium, with Tallis Scholars Ensemble.
Tallis's next post was at Canterbury Cathedral. He was sent to Court as a Gentleman of the Chapel Royal in 1543, where he composed and performed for Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I, and Elizabeth I, until he died in 1585. Tallis avoided the religious controversies that raged around him throughout his service to successive monarchs, though he remained an "unreformed Roman Catholic".
Queen Mary granted Tallis a lease on a manor in Kent which provided a comfortable annual income. In 1575, Queen Elizabeth granted him and William Byrd a 21-year monopoly for polyphonic music and a patent to print and publish music, one of the first arrangements of that type in the country. Tallis had exclusive rights to print any music in any language, and he and Byrd were the only ones allowed to use the paper that was used in printing music.
Tallis's next post was at Canterbury Cathedral. He was sent to Court as a Gentleman of the Chapel Royal in 1543, where he composed and performed for Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I, and Elizabeth I, until he died in 1585. Tallis avoided the religious controversies that raged around him throughout his service to successive monarchs, though he remained an "unreformed Roman Catholic".
Queen Mary granted Tallis a lease on a manor in Kent which provided a comfortable annual income. In 1575, Queen Elizabeth granted him and William Byrd a 21-year monopoly for polyphonic music and a patent to print and publish music, one of the first arrangements of that type in the country. Tallis had exclusive rights to print any music in any language, and he and Byrd were the only ones allowed to use the paper that was used in printing music.
Later works
Toward the end of his life, Tallis resisted the musical development seen in his younger contemporaries such as William Byrd, who embraced compositional complexity and adopted texts of disparate biblical extracts. Tallis was content to draw his texts from the Liturgy and wrote for the worship services in the Chapel Royal. He composed during the conflict between Catholicism and Protestantism, and his music often displays characteristics of the turmoil. However, he retained respect during a time of religious and political upheaval, and he avoided the violence which claimed Catholics and Protestants alike.Tallis Death
Tallis died in his house in Greenwich in November 1585; most historians agree that he died on 23 November. He was buried in the chancel of the parish of St Alfege Church, Greenwich, though the exact location in the church is unknown.Highly Suggested Link:
Thomas Tallis: Spem in alium. A mystery in 40 parts. YouTube, uploaded by Jaakko Mantyjarvi. Accessed August 10, 2020.
Trivia: About the Renaissance
During the Renaissance, contnuing developments in the notation of both sacred and secular music, the invention of new instruments especially keyboard instruments, and the invention of printing made possible the expression of increasingly inventive musical motifs. Working in a new tradition of personal achievement and service to music itself, works for more than on musical "voice" was re-created. Aside from Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, this "Golden Age of Polyphony" included other composers like Josquin Desprez (1440-1521), William Byrd (1543-1623), Orlando Gibbons (1583-1625), and John Dowland (1563-1626).
Video Credit:
Spem in Alium (Thomas Tallis) - Tallis Scholars. YouTube uploaded by Choral Music. Accessed August 10, 2015.
Image Credit:
Thomas Tallis. en/wikipedia.org / Public Domain
Resources:
Sadie, Stanley, Ed. The Grove Dictionary of Music, New Updated Ed. London: Macmillan Publishers. 1994.
Thomas Tallis. en.wikipedia.org. Accessed August 10, 2015.
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