Elizabeth Ist coat of arms

Thomas Tallis

Picture of Thomas Tallis

Picture of Thomas Tallis


Short Biography of the life of Thomas Tallis - Composer and Musician
The following biography information provides basic facts about the life Thomas Tallis:

  • Nationality - English
  • Lifespan - 1505 - 1585
  • Born: 1505 at Leicester in England

  • Married: Joan in 1552, they had no children
  • Died: Thomas Tallis died 1585 in Greenwich, England
  • Religion - Catholic
  • Career - Composer and Musician referred to as the "father of English church music"
  • Famous for : 40-part motet Spem in alium - for eight choirs of five voices

    Short Biography, Timeline, Facts & History about the life of Thomas Tallis - Composer and Musician
    Elizabethan Musicians composed music for musical instruments and the voice. The Elizabethan Golden Age saw the emergence of the Anthem, the Madrigal, the Masque, the Theatre and the Opera and the emergence of new English music schools.  The following are additional facts about the bio, timeline, life and history of Thomas Tallis:

    • 1505: Thomas Tallis was born in Leicestershire
    • 1535 Tallis was an organist at Dover Priory
    • Thomas Tallis then took up positions at Saint Mary-at-Hill in London and then to Waltham Abbey and Canterbury Cathedral
    • 1552: Thomas Tallis married - his wife was called Joan
    • Thomas Tallis then sang in the Chapel Royal during the reign of Mary Tudor where he met William Byrd
    • 1575 January 22: Thomas Tallis and William Byrd were granted an exclusive license to print and publish music by Elizabeth I
    • 1575: Byrd and Tallis jointly published Cantiones Sacrae, a collection of 38 Latin motets
    • 1585 November 5: Thomas Tallis died in 1585 and was buried in Islington Parish Church
    Elizabethan Music
    Elizabethan Era Index

    Privacy Statement

    Cookie Policy

    © 2017 Siteseen Ltd