John Farmer (1570-1605)
Encyclopedia
John Farmer was a composer of the English Madrigal School
. He was born in England
around 1570 but his exact date of birth is not known - a 1926 article by Grattan Flood posits a date around 1564 to 1565 based on matriculation records. Farmer was under the patronage of Earl of Oxford
and dedicated his collection of canons and his late madrigal volume to his patron. In 1595, Farmer was appointed Organ
ist and Master of Children at Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin and also, at the same time, organist of St Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin. In 1599, he moved to London and published his only collection of four-part madrigals, that he dedicated to Edward de Vere.
Giles Farnaby
dedicated a pavan to him, included in the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book
as Farmer's Paven (no. CCLXXXVII).
English Madrigal School
The English Madrigal School was the brief but intense flowering of the musical madrigal in England, mostly from 1588 to 1627, along with the composers who produced them. The English madrigals were a cappella, predominantly light in style, and generally began as either copies or direct translations...
. He was born in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
around 1570 but his exact date of birth is not known - a 1926 article by Grattan Flood posits a date around 1564 to 1565 based on matriculation records. Farmer was under the patronage of Earl of Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
and dedicated his collection of canons and his late madrigal volume to his patron. In 1595, Farmer was appointed Organ
Organ (music)
The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
ist and Master of Children at Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin and also, at the same time, organist of St Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin. In 1599, he moved to London and published his only collection of four-part madrigals, that he dedicated to Edward de Vere.
Giles Farnaby
Giles Farnaby
Giles Farnaby was an English composer and virginalist of the Renaissance and Baroque periods.-Life:Giles Farnaby was born about 1563, perhaps in Truro, Cornwall, England or near London. His father, Thomas, was a Cittizen and Joyner of London, and Giles may have been related to Thomas Farnaby , the...
dedicated a pavan to him, included in the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book
Fitzwilliam Virginal Book
The Fitzwilliam Virginal Book is a primary source of keyboard music from the late Elizabethan and early Jacobean periods in England, i.e., the late Renaissance and very early Baroque. It takes its name from Viscount Fitzwilliam who bequeathed this manuscript collection to Cambridge University in 1816...
as Farmer's Paven (no. CCLXXXVII).
Selected works
- Fair Phyllis I Saw Sitting All Alone
- Fair Nymphs, I Heard One Telling
- A Pretty Little Bonny Lass
- Take Time While Time Doth Last
Recordings
External links
- Listen to a free recording of a song from Umeå Akademiska Kör.
- 1926 article from The Musical Times by Grattan Flood on John Farmer.