Taverner was appointed Informator (choirmaster) at Cardinal College (now Christ Church), Oxford, which was founded by Cardinal Wolsey and had a lavish choir.
Composer Biography
After leaving Oxford, Taverner worked as an agent for Thomas Cromwell, who was commissioned by Henry VIII to survey monasteries before their dissolution.
Compositional Technique
Taverner's Mass 'The Western Wynde' is notable for its ingenuity, clarity of structure, and tunefulness, and was admired by younger composers like Tye and Sheppard.
Compositional Technique
In some of Taverner's works, particularly later ones, there is a systematic use of imitation and a move towards clearer textures and simpler rhythms, showing continental influence.
Compositional Technique
The Mass 'The Western Wynde' is possibly the earliest English mass based on a secular melody, a practice advocated by Luther and common on the continent since Dufay's time.
Composer's Artistic Vision
Taverner's music represents the final development of the florid late-medieval English style, incorporating new aesthetic and technical features from continental Europe.
Composer Biography
John Taverner, a prominent English composer, was first documented in 1525 as a lay clerk at the collegiate church of Tattershall.
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