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Curated category

16th-century English musicians

  • William ByrdWilliam Byrd was born in London, likely around 1540. No birth record survives for the third surviving son of Thomas Byrd and his wife Margery.
  • John Bull (composer)The year 1562 or 1563 marks the uncertain birth of John Bull, an English composer and organist whose origins remain a subject of historical debate.
  • Thomas TallisNo record exists of Thomas Tallis's birth, family, or childhood. Historians estimate he was born between 1500 and 1520, near the end of Henry VII's reign.
  • Mark SmeatonMark Smeaton stood in the round window of Queen Anne's chamber at Winchester on a Saturday before May Day. He was around 23 years old when he died, yet his…
  • John TavernerNothing is known of John Taverner's activities before 1524. He appears to have come from the East Midlands, possibly being born in Tattershall, Lincolnshire.