Transcript Henry Purcell

Henry
Purcell
Born in
1659 in
England
Henry’s Childhood
Purcell is generally
considered to have
been the greatest
English composer
since William Byrd.
Byrd
Purcell
Fortunately for Henry,
Byrd had been dead for
several years when
Purcell was born, so the
two of them didn’t have
a showdown.
Henry’s Childhood
Purcell began his musical career as a boy,
singing in the Chapel Royal (the king’s very own
choir). The choir was still in its early stages and
one writer stated “not one lad was capable of
singing his part readily.”
To solve this problem,
King Charles II (the
king of England at
that time) gave the
choir director
permission to send
out talent scouts
across the country to
steal promising young
boys from other
choirs. Who do you
think was upset by
this?
In 1673, Henry’s voice
broke, but the King didn’t
want to let the talented
boy go. He was given the
apprentice job of “keeper,
maker, mender, repairer,
and tuner of the regalls,
organs, flutes, recorders,
and all other kind of wind
instruments whatsoever.”
Purcell shortened that title to “Maker of the King’s
Instruments.”
After Henry’s voice
change slowed down, he
again joined the king’s
choir, but now as a
“Gentleman” of the
Chapel Royal. This choir
sang in Westminster
Abbey, and he
eventually became the
organist at this fantastic
cathedral. Nobody is
sure how old the
Westminster Abbey is,
but it is believed to be
around 1000 years old.
In addition to their regular salary, each of the 32
Gentlemen of the Chapel Royal received an annual bonus.
Originally, this consisted of three deer, but was later
changed to a sum of money, which was more easily
divided by the 32 men. It was certainly less messy.
After being organist for a while, Purcell also
became the composer for the King’s violins
(Henry’s first composing position)
In 1685, King Charles
II died and was
succeeded by King
James II. Fortunately
for Purcell, the new
king kept Purcell in
his position and even
asked him to
compose some music
for his coronation.
What is a coronation?
King James II only lasted 4 years
as king before he died and King
William III and Queen Mary II
became the new monarchs of
England.
William III and Mary II were not
only husband and wife, but also
first cousins. As before, Purcell
composed music for their
coronation too.
Purcell was well paid
for composing for the
coronation, so he
started composing
songs for weddings,
birthdays, and for the
departure and return
of important people.
With extra time on his
hands, Purcell began
composing some music
for the theater,
including a bunch of
mini-operas and one
full length opera called
“Dido and Aeneas.”
This song is called
“Dido’s Lament.”
Dido and Aeneas
The "moral" of the story is
that young women should
not yield to the advances of
eager young men and their
promises.
In time, Purcell
became
increasingly in
demand as a
composer.
It was his theater music in particular that
made him familiar to many who knew
nothing of his church music or the odes and
welcome songs he wrote for the court.
Queen Mary loved
England and the
English people
loved her. So when
she died in 1694,
Purcell wrote a very
moving piece
called, of course,
“Funeral Music for
Queen Mary.” You
are listening to it
right now.
Just in case
some people
didn’t hear
“Funeral Music
for Queen
Mary,” Purcell
died the very
next year in
1695, and that
same piece was
played at his
funeral too.
To make his funeral
more interesting, the
church leaders of the
Westminster Abbey
buried Henry beneath
the pipe organ that he
played. His epigraph
reads, “Here lyes Henry
Purcell Esq., who left
this life and is gone to
that blessed place
where only his
harmony can be
exceeded.”
Listening:
(click to start)
Composer:
Henry Purcell
Songs:
1. If Music Be
the Food of Love
2. Funeral Music
for Queen Mary
The End