Thomas Tallis
No 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. His only known relative was a cousin named John Sayer. Both surnames connect strongly to Kent, suggesting his origins lie within that county. Some accounts suggest he sang as a child in the Chapel Royal, though this remains unproven. He may have been a chorister at Dover Priory, but no documents confirm his education there. The silence surrounding these early years leaves historians with almost nothing concrete about his formative period.
Tallis served four monarchs: Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I, and Elizabeth I. He avoided religious controversies while maintaining an unreformed Roman Catholic faith. Records show he worked as an organist after 1570, yet likely held that role throughout his career. In 1531, he appears in Dover Priory accounts as 'joculator organorum' receiving £2 annually. He directed six singing boys alongside his duties. When the priory dissolved in 1535, no record details his departure. By summer 1540, he led singers at Canterbury Cathedral among ten boys and twelve men. He remained there for two years before moving to the Chapel Royal around 1543. Tallis taught William Byrd, Elway Bevin, and Sir Ferdinando Heybourne during his service.
In 1575, Queen Elizabeth granted Tallis and William Byrd a twenty-one-year monopoly on polyphonic music. They received exclusive rights to print any music in English, Latin, French, or Italian. The patent also gave them sole use of paper for printing music. Their only publication under this agreement was the 1575 Cantiones quae ab argumento sacrae vocantur. Sir Ferdinando Heybourne prefaced the work, stating their intent to join great composers like Lassus and Gombert. Sales failed to meet expectations, forcing an appeal to Elizabeth. Catholics faced restrictions on importing music and lacked printing presses. A second petition in 1577 secured a joint lease of crown lands for both composers. Tallis likely ceased active composition after this publication, as no works from these final years survive.
Tallis's earliest surviving works include Alleluia: Ora pro nobis and Magnificat for four voices. Three devotional antiphons to the Virgin Mary date to the 1520s, with manuscripts held at London's British Library. Salve intemerata stands as a precocious work using models by John Taverner and Robert Fayrfax. Gaude gloriosa Dei mater originally referenced the 'Gaude' Window in Canterbury Cathedral before receiving an English contrafactum for Henry VIII's campaign. Missa Salve Intemerata represents his first complete mass, employing parody techniques more modern than its source material. During Edward VI's reign, he wrote anthems set to English words alongside services for the Book of Common Prayer. Queen Mary restored the Sarum Rite, prompting Tallis to compose Suscipe quaeso Domine, a seven-voice motet celebrating the end of the schism. Missa Puer natus est nobis, composed December 1554, features cryptic patterns resembling Ockeghem's mathematical games within its tenor part.
Two large-scale keyboard works, Felix namque I and Felix namque II, appear in the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book. These pieces display virtuosic writing unmatched by any other European tradition of that period. Tallis produced two In Nomines, a Fantasy, and a Solfing Song Ut-Re-Mi-Fa-Sol during his later years. His secular output increased significantly toward the end of his career. When shall my sorrowful sighing slack? gained popularity enough to appear in both English and Scottish sources. O sacrum convivium and Salvator mundi may have originated as secular fantasias before receiving liturgical texts for the 1575 Cantiones sacrae. The Baldwin Partbooks preserve two psalm settings: Domine quis habitabit and Laudate Dominum omnes gentes. Domine quis habitavit employs Flemish style, while Laudate Dominum reflects a lively Elizabethan approach that influenced young William Byrd.
Tallis remained largely forgotten outside England until the Victorian revival of early music. Spem in alium was rediscovered then and immediately experimented with by modern composers. Ralph Vaughan Williams composed Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis in 1910 using one of Tallis's nine psalm chant tunes from Matthew Parker's Psalter published in 1567. Herbert Howells also borrowed themes from Tallis for his own compositions. The monumental Tudor Church Music series began in the 1920s under Carnegie Trust support. R.R. Terry pushed for reviving Tudor church music to expand choral repertoire at Westminster Cathedral. Early music groups like The Clerkes of Oxenford and The Tallis Scholars furthered interest in Tallis's Latin works. Chapelle du Roi recorded complete works in 2005 celebrating five centuries since his estimated birth. Alamire released Se Lord and behold in 2017 under Obsidian label. No contemporary portrait survives; Gerard Vandergucht painted one 150 years after Tallis died.
Continue Browsing
Common questions
When was Thomas Tallis born and where did he originate from?
Historians estimate that Thomas Tallis was born between 1500 and 1520 near the end of Henry VII's reign. His origins lie within Kent, as both his surname and his cousin John Sayer connect strongly to that county.
Which monarchs did Thomas Tallis serve during his career?
Thomas Tallis served four monarchs: Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I, and Elizabeth I. He maintained an unreformed Roman Catholic faith while avoiding religious controversies throughout these reigns.
What monopoly did Queen Elizabeth grant to Thomas Tallis in 1575?
In 1575, Queen Elizabeth granted Thomas Tallis and William Byrd a twenty-one-year monopoly on polyphonic music. This patent gave them exclusive rights to print any music in English, Latin, French, or Italian along with sole use of paper for printing music.
What are the earliest surviving works by Thomas Tallis?
The earliest surviving works by Thomas Tallis include Alleluia: Ora pro nobis and Magnificat for four voices. Three devotional antiphons to the Virgin Mary date to the 1520s and manuscripts are held at London's British Library.
How was Thomas Tallis rediscovered after being largely forgotten outside England?
Thomas Tallis remained largely forgotten until the Victorian revival of early music when Spem in alium was rediscovered. Ralph Vaughan Williams composed Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis in 1910 using one of Tallis's nine psalm chant tunes from Matthew Parker's Psalter published in 1567.