Henry Purcell: Life and Legacy

• Henry Purcell was born around September 10, 1659, in Westminster, London, and died November 21, 1695, at age 36.
• Purcell married Frances Purcell in 1682, and they had six children, including Edward Purcell, who was also a musician.
• He is considered among the greatest English opera composers, on par with John Dunstable and William Byrd.
• Purcell's fame was unmatched by any native-born English composer until the 20th century with Edward Elgar, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Gustav Holst, William Walton, and Benjamin Britten.

Early Life

• He was born on St Ann's Lane, Old Pye Street, Westminster, an area then known as Devil's Acre.
• His father, Henry Purcell Senior, was a gentleman of the Chapel Royal and sang at King Charles II of England's coronation.
• Daniel Purcell, Henry's younger brother, was also a composer, contributing to the final act of The Indian Queen after Henry's death.
• Following his father's death in 1664, Purcell became the ward of his uncle Thomas, who ensured he became a chorister.
• He studied under Captain Henry Cooke and Pelham Humfrey, and was influenced by family friend Matthew Locke.
• Purcell was a chorister in the Chapel Royal until 1673 when his voice changed.

Career

• By age nine, Purcell was said to be composing, with his earliest confirmed work being an ode for the King's birthday in 1670.
• It is believed that Sweet tyranness, I now resign was written when Purcell was a child.
• After Humfrey's death, he studied under Dr John Blow and was appointed copyist at Westminster Abbey.
• His earliest anthem, Lord, who can tell, was composed in 1678, and is a psalm for Christmas Day.
• In 1679, he composed songs for John Playford's Choice Ayres, Songs and Dialogues and an anthem for the Chapel Royal.
• He wrote anthems for the Rev. John Gostling, known for his exceptional basso profondo voice with a two-octave range.
• One notable anthem for Gostling is They that go down to the sea in ships, written to celebrate King Charles II's escape from a shipwreck.
• Between 1680 and 1688, he composed music for seven plays.
• His chamber opera Dido and Aeneas is a significant work in English dramatic music, with a libretto by Nahum Tate.
• Dido and Aeneas was performed in 1689 at a boarding school for young gentlewomen run by Josias Priest, a dancing master.
• Some consider it the first genuine English opera, though that title is often given to Blow's Venus and Adonis.
• Dido and Aeneas was not performed in theaters during Purcell's time but was popular in private circles; it remained in manuscript until 1840.
• The opera is based on Virgil's Aeneid, and marked Purcell's first opportunity to write a sustained musical setting of a dramatic text.
• In early 1679, he wrote music for Nathaniel Lee's Theodosius and Thomas d'Urfey's Virtuous Wife.
• In 1679, Purcell succeeded Blow as the organist of Westminster Abbey, dedicating himself to sacred music for six years.
• Following his marriage in 1682, he became organist of the Chapel Royal after Edward Lowe's death, holding both positions concurrently.
• His first printed composition, Twelve Sonatas, was published in 1683.
• In 1685, he composed I was glad and My heart is inditing for King James II's coronation.
• In 1690, he composed Arise, my muse for Queen Mary's birthday ode, and in 1694, Come Ye Sons of Art.
• In 1687, he resumed theater work, composing music for John Dryden's Tyrannick Love.
• Also in 1687, Purcell composed Quick-step, which became popular when Lord Wharton set Lillibullero to it.
• By January 1688, Purcell composed Blessed are they that fear the Lord under royal command.
• In 1690, he composed music for adaptations of Prophetess and Dryden's Amphitryon.
• In 1691, he composed music for King Arthur, considered a dramatic masterpiece.
• In 1692, he composed The Fairy-Queen, an adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream.
• In 1695, he wrote songs for Dryden and Davenant's version of Shakespeare's The Tempest and The Indian Queen.
• His dramatic operas featured spoken dialogue instead of recitative, with songs performed by singers in minor dramatic roles.
• Purcell's Te Deum and Jubilate Deo were written for Saint Cecilia's Day in 1694, the first English Te Deum with orchestral accompaniment.
• During his final six years, Purcell wrote music for forty-two plays
• These works were performed at St Paul's Cathedral until 1712.
• He composed an anthem and elegies for Queen Mary II's funeral, titled Funeral Sentences and Music for the Funeral of Queen Mary.
• Purcell wrote music for various works, including Thomas d'Urfey's plays, sacred music, odes, and cantatas.
• His instrumental chamber and keyboard music output was minimal after his early career.
• In 1693, Purcell composed music for two comedies: The Old Bachelor and The Double Dealer, as well as five other plays.
• In July 1695, Purcell composed an ode for the Duke of Gloucester's sixth birthday, titled Who can from joy refrain?

Death

• Purcell died in 1695 at his home in Marsham Street, possibly from a chill or tuberculosis.
• The music from Queen Mary's funeral was performed at his funeral.
• He was mourned as "a very great master of music" and buried in Westminster Abbey.
• Purcell had six children with his wife Frances, but four died in infancy.
• His wife Frances published his works, including Orpheus Britannicus.
• His son Edward was an organist, succeeded by his son Edward Henry Purcell.

Legacy

• Purcell's most notable works include the opera Dido and Aeneas, semi-operas Dioclesian, King Arthur, The Fairy-Queen, and Timon of Athens.
• He also wrote Hail! Bright Cecilia, Come Ye Sons of Art, and Funeral Sentences and Music for the Funeral of Queen Mary.
• After his death, Purcell was honored by contemporaries like John Blow and William Croft.
• Gerard Manley Hopkins wrote a sonnet titled "Henry Purcell," praising his unique ability to express the essence of humanity in music.
• Purcell influenced the English musical renaissance, notably Benjamin Britten, who arranged Purcell's works and based The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra on a Purcell theme.
• Ignaz Friedman considered Purcell as great as Bach and Beethoven.
• A bronze monument by Glynn Williams stands in Victoria Street, Westminster, commemorating Purcell.
• The Royal Mail featured Purcell on a commemorative postage stamp in 2009.
• A Purcell Club was founded in London in 1836, dissolved in 1863, and re-established in modern times.
• There is a Henry Purcell Society of Boston and a Purcell Society in London dedicated to studying and promoting his music.
• Purcell's works are catalogued by Franklin Zimmerman, with a "Z" number preceding each composition.
• The popular Purcell's Trumpet Voluntary was actually written by Jeremiah Clarke and titled Prince of Denmark's March.