William Inglott memorial at Norwich Cathedral

William Inglott or Inglot (1553/4buried 31 December 1621) was an English organist and composer of the

Elizabethan era The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of Britannia (a female personifi ...

, who is mostly associated with the

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

in the English city of

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

. Inglott moved from Norwich to

Hereford Cathedral Hereford Cathedral is the cathedral church of the Anglican Diocese of Hereford in Hereford, England. A place of worship has existed on the site of the present building since the 8th century or earlier. The present building was begun in 1079. S ...

, returning in 1611 to replace the composer

Thomas Morley Thomas Morley (1557 – early October 1602) was an English composer, theorist, singer and organist of the Renaissance. He was one of the foremost members of the English Madrigal School. Referring to the strong Italian influence on the Englis ...

as the cathedral organist. His memorial

plaque Plaque may refer to: Commemorations or awards * Commemorative plaque, a plate or tablet fixed to a wall to mark an event, person, etc. * Memorial Plaque (medallion), issued to next-of-kin of dead British military personnel after World War I * Pla ...

Norwich Cathedral Norwich Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Norwich, Norfolk, dedicated to the Holy and Undivided Trinity. It is the cathedral church for the Church of England Diocese of Norwich and is one of the Norwich 12 heritage sites. The cathedral ...

was restored 90 years after his death. Amongst the few surviving works by Ingott are two keyboard pieces by Ingott in the collection of keyboard music known as the ''

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 beque ...

'' and a ''Short Service'' for four voices, reconstructed in 1989.

Biography

Norwich Cathedral, spire and south transept

William Inglott's father Edmund (d. 1583) was the

organist An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ (music), organ. An organist may play organ repertoire, solo organ works, play with an musical ensemble, ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumentalist, instrumental ...

. William retained a strong connection to the cathedral during his career, first as a

chorister A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

under his father (15671568), as a

lay clerk A lay clerk, also known as a lay vicar, song man or a vicar choral, is a professional adult singer in an Anglican cathedral and often Roman Catholic Cathedrals in the UK, or (occasionally) collegiate choir in Britain and Ireland. The vicars chora ...

(from 1576), and as the cathedral's organist (15871591). He was paid in 1582 for teaching the boys in the choir during a period when his father was too ill to work. Inglott moved to

as Master of the Choristers from 1597 until some time after 1610, but returned to

as organist in 1611, replacing the composer

. Nothing is known of his career during this intervening period. Upon his return to Norwich he was paid to be the organist on 1 June; his first recorded payment (1 June 1611), which was double the salary given to Morley, may reflect an increase in responsibility or workload. He held the position until his death in December 1621, aged 67. His painted memorial

on a pillar in the cathedral records he was buried on 31 December of that year. The memorial shows two

s bearing wreaths over his body and the following verse: The monument was restored 90 years after Inglott's death, at the expense of the composer

William Croft William Croft (baptised 30 December 1678 – 14 August 1727) was an English composer and organist. Life Croft was born at the Manor House, Nether Ettington, Warwickshire. He was educated at the Chapel Royal under the instruction of John Blow ...

Surviving works

Few works by Inglott survive. Two keyboard pieces, ''The Leaves Bee Greene'' and ''A Galliard Ground'', are preserved in the ''

'', a collection of

Elizabethan The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of Britannia (a female personifi ...

and Jacobean keyboard music with works by Inglott's contemporaries, such as

William Byrd William Byrd (; 4 July 1623) was an English composer of late Renaissance music. Considered among the greatest composers of the Renaissance, he had a profound influence on composers both from his native England and those on the continent. He ...

and

Martin Peerson Martin Peerson (or Pearson, Pierson, Peereson) (between 1571 and 1573 – December 1650 or January 1651 and buried 16 January 1651) was an English composer, organist and virginalist. Despite Roman Catholic leanings at a time when it was illegal n ...

. An untitled keyboard piece by 'Englitt' in ''Will Forster's Virginal Book'' (1624) at the

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the British ...

may also have been composed by Inglott. The

musicologist Musicology (from Greek μουσική ''mousikē'' 'music' and -λογια ''-logia'', 'domain of study') is the scholarly analysis and research-based study of music. Musicology departments traditionally belong to the humanities, although some mu ...

Ian Payne describes the variations by Inglott in the ''Fitzwilliam Virginal'' as being "well crafted, richly polyphonic, and technically demanding". In 1989, Inglott's ''Short Service'' for four voices was reconstructed by Michael Walsh from transcriptions by Richard Turbet.

Recordings

References

Sources

* * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Inglott, William 1550s births 1621 deaths 16th-century English composers 17th-century English composers English Baroque composers Cathedral organists English classical organists British male organists English classical composers Musicians from Norwich Composers from Norwich Renaissance composers 17th-century classical composers English male classical composers Norwich Cathedral 17th-century male musicians Year of birth uncertain Male classical organists