William Byrd
A Composer of the Renaissance
Early Life, Summarized
Byrd was born into a religious family of four sisters and two brothers in 1543, however his early childhood is disputed because there was so little documentation of what went on in his life. What is known about him is that he was a child prodigy of music, which he had a strong passion for. During his early years, he was a choir boy at London's Royal Chapel until 1568. In addition, more was known about him when he took lessons from another famous composer, Thomas Tallis, which they would later become patronized by Queen Elizabeth the First.
Timeline
1543
- Byrd was born
- Tutored by Thomas Tallis
- Married
- Became an organist
- Queen Elizabeth declares him as Gentleman of the Church
- Byrd's mentor, Thomas Tallis, passes away
- Byrd gains a monopoly in music production
1593
- Moved from London to Essex
- Byrd passes away
Major Works
Gradualia
- Composed in 1605, for Roman Catholic Church
- Supposedly written for Queen Elizabeth
- Written in 1588, contained MANY Madrigals- emotion expressed in vocal songs
Kyrie
- Composed in 1590-1600, exact date unknown
- Byrd's most significant song he composed
- First song to lack a liturgical background- holy prayer
- What makes this piece so interesting is that it influenced other composers to write different songs without liturgical background
Humanism - Singers express emotion through song
Kyrie from Missa for 4 voices - W.Byrd by enricator
Sources
"William Byrd". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.
Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2013. Web. 17 Jan. 2013
Waaaaaaaaaaaaay too much information, had to cut down, rich in it, though.
"William Byrd." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Gale Biography In Context. Web. 22 Jan. 2013.
Best source in general.
"William Byrd." 2013. The Famous People website. Jan 17 2013, 18:40
Went more into detail about Kyrie.
Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2013. Web. 17 Jan. 2013
Waaaaaaaaaaaaay too much information, had to cut down, rich in it, though.
"William Byrd." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Gale Biography In Context. Web. 22 Jan. 2013.
Best source in general.
"William Byrd." 2013. The Famous People website. Jan 17 2013, 18:40
Went more into detail about Kyrie.
Pictures
Kyrie - http://www.lewesvoiceworks.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/ByrdKyrie-3parts.png
Portrait of William Byrd - http://userserve-ak.last.fm/serve/_/9272473/William+Byrd+Byrd.jpg
Audio
Kyrie - https://soundcloud.com/enricator/kyrie-from-missa-for-4-voices