Thomas Linley
Encyclopedia
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...
musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
, was born in Badminton, Gloucestershire, and studied music in Bath, where he settled as a singing-master and conductor of the concerts.
From 1774 he was engaged in the management at Drury Lane theatre, London
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane is a West End theatre in Covent Garden, in the City of Westminster, a borough of London. The building faces Catherine Street and backs onto Drury Lane. The building standing today is the most recent in a line of four theatres at the same location dating back to 1663,...
, composing or compiling the music of many of the pieces produced there, besides songs and madrigals, which rank high among English compositions. In 1786 he collaborated with John Burgoyne
John Burgoyne
General John Burgoyne was a British army officer, politician and dramatist. He first saw action during the Seven Years' War when he participated in several battles, mostly notably during the Portugal Campaign of 1762....
on the successful Richard Coeur de lion
Richard Coeur de Lion (play)
Richard Coeur de Lion: An historical romance is a 1786 semi-opera with an English text by John Burgoyne set to music by Thomas Linley the Elder. It was first staged at Drury Lane Theatre in October 1786. It was a translation of Michel-Jean Sedaine's opera Richard Coeur-de-lion about the life of the...
.
Children
With his wife Mary Johnson, he had 12 children, 7 of whom went on to musical or theatrical careers:- Elizabeth Ann LinleyElizabeth Ann LinleyElizabeth Ann Sheridan was the second daughter of the composer Thomas Linley and his wife Mary Johnson, and was herself the wife of the playwright Richard Brinsley Sheridan.-Life:Of the 7 Linley children destined for musical careers, it is said that Elizabeth had the greatest talent and beauty...
(1754–1792), his eldest daughter, wife of Richard Brinsley SheridanRichard Brinsley SheridanRichard Brinsley Butler Sheridan was an Irish-born playwright and poet and long-term owner of the London Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. For thirty-two years he was also a Whig Member of the British House of Commons for Stafford , Westminster and Ilchester... - Thomas Linley the youngerThomas Linley the youngerThomas Linley the younger was the eldest son of the composer Thomas Linley the elder and his wife Mary Johnson. He was one of the most precocious composers and performers that have been known in England, and became known as the "English Mozart".-Early life:Linley's abilities were apparent from a...
(1756–1778), his eldest son, composer and noted violinist - Mary LinleyMary LinleyMary Linley was one of 7 musical siblings born to Thomas Linley the elder and his wife Mary Johnson. She sang publicly until she married the playwright Richard Tickell in 1780....
(1758–87), married playwright Richard TickellRichard Tickell-Life:He was the second son of the three sons and two daughters of John Tickell and his wife Esther Pierson - this made him a grandson of the poet Thomas Tickell....
in 1780. - Samuel LinleySamuel LinleySamuel Linley was the second son of Thomas Linley the elder and Mary Johnson, one of 7 musical siblings born to that couple. He sang in his father's concerts, 1774-5, and played the oboe. In 1778 he became a midshipman on HMS Thunderer, aboard which he contracted the fever from which he...
(1760–1778), second son, singer and oboe player - Maria LinleyMaria LinleyMaria Linley was an 18th century English singer. She was trained as a singer by her father Thomas Linley the elder and performed in the Drury Lane oratorios and in concerts until her early death. She was also sketched by the British artist Samuel Shelley as Saint Cecilia, patron saint of...
(1763–84), singer. - Ozias Thurston LinleyOzias Thurston LinleyOzias Thurston Linley was one of 7 musical siblings born to the composer Thomas Linley the elder and his wife Mary Johnson.He graduated at Corpus Christi College, Oxford in 1789, becoming a minor canon of Norwich Cathedral the following year and Junior Fellow and Organist at Dulwich College from...
(1765–1831), minor canon at Norwich and organist at Dulwich - William LinleyWilliam LinleyWilliam Linley was one of 7 musical siblings born to Thomas Linley the elder and his wife Mary Johnson.He joined the British East India Company and was in India 1790-5 and 1800-5, holding a writership at their College in Madras. He retired from the company in 1810 and devoted himself to singing,...
, (1771–1835), composer of gleeGlee (music)A glee is an English type of part song spanning the late baroque, classical and early romantic periods. It is usually scored for at least three voices, and generally intended to be sung unaccompanied. Glees often consist of a number of short, musically contrasted movements and their texts can be...
s and songs and writer.