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Wikipedia
Henry Lawes (December 5, 1595 – October 21, 1662) was an English musician and composer.
He was born at Dinton in Wiltshire, and received his musical education from John Cooper, better known under his Italian pseudonym Giovanni Coperario, a famous composer of the day. In 1626, Lawes was received as one of the gentlemen of the chapel royal, and held the position until the Commonwealth put a stop to church music. Nevertheless Lawes continued his work as a composer, and the famous collection of his vocal pieces, Ayres and Dialogues for One, Two and Three Voyces, was published in 1653 and followed by two other books under the same title in 1655 and 1658 respectively. On the Restoration of the monarchy in 1660, Lawes returned to the royal chapel, and composed an anthem for the coronation of King Charles II. He was buried in Westminster Abbey.
Lawes's name has become known beyond musical circles because of his friendship with John Milton, for whose masque, Comus, he supplied the incidental music for the first performance in 1634. The poet in return immortalized his friend in a famous sonnet in which Milton, with a musical perception not common amongst poets, describes the great merit of Lawes. His careful attention to the words of the poet, the manner in which his music seems to grow from those words, the perfect coincidence of the musical with the metrical accent, cause Lawes's songs to be regarded by some as on a level with those of Robert Schumann or Franz Liszt. At the same time he is not lacking in genuine melodic invention, and his concerted music shows skilled use of counterpoint.
Henry Lawes was the brother of William Lawes, also a composer.
[edit] References
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
[edit] External links
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| Name | Lawes, Henry |
| Alternative names | |
| Short description | English musician and composer |
| Date of birth | 5 December 1595 |
| Place of birth | Dinton, Wiltshire |
| Date of death | 21 October 1662 |
| Place of death | |
Annotations
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HENRY LAWES (1596-1662) Sitting by the Streams THE CONSORT OF MUSICKE
http://www.hyperion-records.co.uk/details/66135.asp
For 13L you can get a cd to hear “heaven & Hell”
http://shop.castleclassics.co.uk/acatalog/Lawes_Henry.html
from annos…..
O King of Heaven and Hell, of Sea and Earth! … More Lawes. Orpheus -
Henry Lawes
LAWES, HENRY (1595-1662), English musician, was born at Dinton in Wiltshire in December 1595, and received his musical education from John Cooper, better known under his Italian pseudonym Giovanni Coperario (d. 1627), a famous composer of the day. In 1626 he was received as one of the gentlemen of the chapel royal, which place he held till the Commonwealth put a stop to church music. But even during that songless time Lawes continued his work as a composer, and the famous collection of his vocal pieces, A yres and Dialogues for One, Two and Three Voyces, was published in. 1653, being followed by two other books under the same title in 1655 and 1658 respectively. When in 1660 the king returned, Lawes once more entered the royal chapel, and composed an anthem for the coronation. of Charles II. He died on the 21st of October 1662, and was buried in Westminster Abbey….
1911 Encyclopedia Britannica article
http://66.1911encyclopedia.org/L/LA/LAWES_HENRY.htm -
Henry Lawes (1595 - 1662)
Includes downloads of performances:-
http://www.naxos.com/composerinfo/bio22779.htmLink to the ‘Google Book’ text of Ian Spink’s study ‘Henry Lawes: Cavalier songwriter,’ Oxford: 2000.
http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&id=bB6oRGcUZ3wC&dq=%22henry+lawes%22&printsec=frontcover&source=web&ots=zFh5b70tBC&sig=LXiVu-4XvoQ8HKbUYwujNrnOogM#PPP1,M1 -
Several representative samples of Henry Lawes music can be heard here
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=henry+lawes&aq=f