'''Thomas Tallis''' (c.1505-1585), [[English]] [[composer]] and organist, has the rare distinction of having served four monarchs in an official capacity. As a young man he wrote [[polyphony|polyphonic]] works in the traditional [[catholic]] style for [[Henry VIII]], before changing to accommodate Archbishop Cranmer’s insistence on a clear syllabic style reflecting new “[[Anglican]]” emphases during the short reign of [[Edward VI]] (and seen in its literary guise in the [[Book of Common Prayer]].) The sudden (and brutal) reversion to catholic orthodoxy under [[Mary I]] saw Tallis write some of his grandest and most elaborate music, once more in a traditional style. | '''Thomas Tallis''' (c.1505-1585), [[English]] [[composer]] and organist, has the rare distinction of having served four monarchs in an official capacity. As a young man he wrote [[polyphony|polyphonic]] works in the traditional [[catholic]] style for [[Henry VIII]], before changing to accommodate Archbishop Cranmer’s insistence on a clear syllabic style reflecting new “[[Anglican]]” emphases during the short reign of [[Edward VI]] (and seen in its literary guise in the [[Book of Common Prayer]].) The sudden (and brutal) reversion to catholic orthodoxy under [[Mary I]] saw Tallis write some of his grandest and most elaborate music, once more in a traditional style. |