William Byrd

William Byrd (1543-1623) was England's foremost composer during the reigns of Elizabeth I and James I. A pupil of Thomas Tallis, he served as organist and master of the choristers at Lincoln Cathedral (1563-73) and in 1570 was sworn in as Gentleman of the Chapel Royal. From the early 1570s onwards Byrd became increasingly involved with Catholicism, which, as the scholarship of the last half-century has demonstrated, became a major factor in his personal and creative life. He evaded persecution only on account of his acknowledged excellence as a composer.