William Lawes

Having never even heard of William Lawes before, I was slightly astonished to discover that his entry in the New Groves extends to over 7 full pages: that's an unusually long article for any composer (Shostakovich only rates 10-and-a-bit, for example), but for a relatively obscure English composer from the early part of the 17th Century, it's practically unique!

He was born in Salisbury in 1602. After his death, he immediately fell into considerable obscurity which lasted pretty much until the 21st Century, when his extensive writing for viol consort was essentially re-discovered and recorded. Linn has a very good recording of a large set of them, for example.

He was appointed 'musician-in-ordinary' to King Charles I in 1635 and thereafter went on to write music for the masques performed at court. He thus collaborated with the likes of Ben Jonson and became probably the most important creator of English stage music before Henry Purcell.

He was allegedly known as 'Gentle Willy' for his good-natured charm, and was a personal friend of the King, who appointed him to the Royal Lifeguards just to ensure he was always close by. Unfortunately, the friendship was to cost him dear: Lawes has the distinction of being about the only composer in my collection who was shot dead by Parliamentarian forces in the middle of the English Civil War in 1645! He had accompanied Charles I to the siege of Chester that year and despite having been commanded to stay out of harm's way, he nevertheless managed to get himself involved in an armed skirmish and was killed. King Charles was upset enough to posthumously declare him to be 'Father of Musick', though seemingly not upset enough to have him buried decently: to this day, no-one knows where his grave is, though it is probably in Chester Cathedral somewhere.

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