Francis Tregian

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Francis Tregian the Younger (* around 1574 in Cornwall , † 1619 in London ) was an English composer of the late Renaissance and early Baroque periods .

biography

Francis Tregian was born into a family from the wealthy Cornish aristocracy, who were known for their strict Catholicism in England during the Reformation . His father of the same name Francis Tregian the Elder (1548–1608) had a. a. the Catholic priest Cuthbert Mayne (1543–1577) granted shelter on his estate. For this purpose, Elizabeth I confiscated his property, which included the considerable income of 3000 pounds sterling annually . Tregian's father spent 28 years in prisons and was pardoned for exile by Jacob I. He died in exile in Lisbon .

Very little is known about the life of the younger Francis Tregian. He was probably trained in France and allegedly worked from 1592 to 1594 in the treasury of Cardinal William Allen (1532–1594) in Rome . This emigrant was the most influential political and religious advocate for the re-Catholicization of England in the late sixteenth century. Tregian returned to England and requested the return of his family's confiscated lands in Cornwall. In 1609 he was arrested because of his "refusal to attend Anglican worship" (the English offense was "recusancy" ), was imprisoned for ten years in Fleet Prison and died there in 1619.

The Swiss writer and director Anne Cuneo (* 1936) shot a documentary about Francis Tregian for Swiss television and 3sat in 1996 based on her own book.

music

The few documents that exist about Tregian show a lively musical interest. Some of his compositions have come down to us. But primarily he compiled pieces for harpsichord , orchestral ensembles and for choirs. He is considered to be the originator of music anthologies that z. B. Fantasies by Thomas Lupo (1571–1627), madrigals by Salamone Rossi (around 1570 – around 1630) or Claudio Monteverdi (1567–1643) are mentioned. Whether he compiled the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book is now considered controversial. For a long time this most important collection of harpsichord music of the late English Renaissance and early Baroque was attributed to him. The idea of ​​the poor musician who passed the time by copying compositions during his imprisonment in Fleet Prison is certainly unhistorical and shaped by later Catholic legends.

literature

  • Boyan, Pearl Alexina: Francis Tregian: Cornish recusant / by PA Boyan and GR Lamb. - London; New York: Sheed and Ward, 1955.
  • Cuneo, Anne: The course of the river: the life and adventures of Francis Tregian, gentleman and musician. Translated from the French by Peter Sidler. Limmat, Zurich 1995, ISBN 3-85791-233-2 ( French original title: Le trajet d'une rivière).
  • The Fitzwilliam virginal book / ed. From the original manuscript by JA Maitland .... - Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Härtel. - In 2 volumes:
    • Volume 1: [score]. - 1963.
    • Volume 2: [score]. - 1963.
  • The Fitzwilliam Virginal Book: Transcriptions for a mixed consort / Charivari Agréable. - London: Signum Records, 1999. - 1 CD (70 min.)
  • Trudgian, Raymond Francis: Francis Tregian: 1548-1608 ; Elisabethan recusant; a truly Catholic Cornishman . Brighton; Portland, Oregon: Alpha Press, 1998. ISBN 1-89859-528-3

CDs

  • Byrd, William: Pieces from "The Fitzwilliam Virginal Book" / Ursula Duetschler [harpsichord]. - Thun: Claves Records , 1990. - 1 CD (70 min.): Stereo , DDD
  • The Fitzwilliam virginal book / Byron Schenkman, harpsichord; Maxine Eilander, harp. - Louisiana  : Centaur, 2003. - 1 CD (71 min.): Stereo, DDD

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ John M. Jennings: The Fantasies of Thomas Lupo. Chelys, Vol. 3, 1971, pp. 3–15 (Journal of the Viola da Gamba Society , York-Dringhouses), (PDF; 768 kB)
  2. ↑ Joshua R. Jacobson: The Choral Music of Salamone Rossi ( Memento of the original from July 6, 2006 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , American Choral Review, Vol. 30 (1988) No. 8 (Journal of the American Choral Foundation )  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.zamir.org
  3. ↑ George Houle: Early Italian Viols, Goldberg Magazine, No. 36/2005 (Goldberg: The early-music portal) ( Memento from July 19, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
  4. ^ Rube Reid Thompson: Francis Tregian the younger as music copyist: A legend and an alternative view , Music and Letters, vol. 2001, issue No. 82, pp. 1–31
  5. ↑ Manfred Hermann Schmid: On the Edition of Music of the 16th Century ( Memento of the original from July 16, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF file; 2.1 MB), Monuments of Music in Baden-Württemberg , Vol. 7, Munich: Strube, 1998, ISBN 3-921946-38-7 , p. XV-XXXVI of the foreword  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.gmg-bw.de

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Tregian, Francis
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English composer
DATE OF BIRTH around 1574
PLACE OF BIRTH Cornwall
DATE OF DEATH 1619
Place of death London