Orlando Gibbons
(1583-1625)


Orlando Gibbons, born in Oxford, came of a musical family, 
like his near contemporary, Thomas Tomkins. His father 
William (c. 1540-1595) was appointed one of the waits 
at Cambridge in 1567, a fact which, at this time, would indicate 
that he was a singer or instrumentalist, or both. Orlando's 
brothers Edward (c. 1570-c. 1650) and Ellis (1573-1603) 
are each represented by a small number of surviving 
works. Christopher (1615-1676), his son, was to achieve 
an estimable position as a composer of the baroque period. 
As might be expected, some confusion in attributions has 
resulted from the fact that several members of the family 
composed. Orlando, in 1596, entered the choir at King's 
College, Cambridge. He became organist of the Chapel 
Royal in 1605, and in 1606 took the degree of Mus. Bac. 
at Cambridge. On May 17, 1622, the Chair of History at 
Oxford was founded by William Camden (1551-1623), the 
antiquary and historian, and at his request the degree of 
Mus. Doc. was conferred upon Gibbons on this occasion. I
n 1623, Gibbons became organist of Westminster Abbey, 
and as such he officiated at James I's funeral in 1625. 
Soon thereafter he himself died suddenly at Canterbury 
where, with the rest of the Chapel Royal, he had gone in 
attendance upon Charles I; the new king was waiting there 
to leave for Dover and meet his bride Henrietta Maria upon
 her arrival from France.

excerpted from:
(http://www.hoasm.org/IVM/Englandthru1635.html)
My thanks to Chris Whent for his outstanding site 
and pages of information which I absolutely 
recommend to the reader, as well as for his 
radio programme, likewise recommended.

