Purcell, Morley & Tomkins: English Royal Funeral Music

Featuring

Lionel Meunier
Benoît Laurent
Jean-François Madeuf
Guy Penson
Vox Luminis
Lingua Franca

Les Trompettes des Plaisirs
Henry Purcell
James Paisible
Thomas Tollett
Thomas Morley
Thomas Weelkes
Thomas Tomkins

Did you know?

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Composition History

For Queen Mary's funeral, Henry Purcell, the court composer, had to compose a replacement for Thomas Morley's 'Thou knowest, Lord' after the original score went missing.

Historical Context

Thomas Tomkins, a pupil of William Byrd, was one of the last musicians to serve the monarchy before King Charles I's execution in 1649, a period that was difficult for musicians under Cromwell's government.

Compositional Technique

Purcell's replacement for 'Thou knowest, Lord' used four 'flatt' or slide trumpets to double the vocal parts, adding a stronger, more emphatic instrumental color.

Compositional Technique

Thomas Weelkes's 'Death hath deprived me', a lament for Morley, uses dissonance in a new expressive way, linking to the musical language Purcell would develop.

Instruments

The 'flatt' or slide trumpet, used in Queen Mary's funeral music, was an English invention with a slide mechanism similar to a trombone, allowing it to play a complete chromatic scale.