Thomas Ford (composer)

Thomas Ford (* around 1580 ; † November 17, 1648 in London ) was an English composer , lutenist , gambist and poet. He was appointed to the royal court by Henry Frederick Stuart , son of Jacob I. As a musician, he worked for Prince Henry from 1610 to 1612, for Prince Karl 1617-25 and, after the latter became King Charles I , until the outbreak of the English Civil War in 1642. Alongside John Dowland , he was the main representative of the generation of composers Henry Lawes . Ford is buried in St Margaret’s in Westminster .

Ford composed three to six-part hymns , four canons of sacred texts, 35 part songs (polyphonic homophonic songs), six five-part fantasies and viol music. His most important collection is the two-part Musicke of Sundrie Kinds (London 1607). The first part Aries for 4 voices to the Lute, Orphorion, or Basse-viol, with a Dialogue for two Voices includes airs for the lute, the second part for the viol consort includes dance movements such as Pavans ( e.g. Mr. Southcote's Pavan , originally for the Lyra-viol ), Galiards , Almaines , Toies , Jigges , Thumpes , and such like , where the term "Thump" means a pizzicato of the left hand. Many of the airs are printed in two versions, each for one or more vocal parts with lute accompaniment or in four-part movements. Some of his sacred works, which appeared in print in 1614 and 1620, included the figured bass , which was still unusual for English music at the time , which was already in use in continental European baroque music , but was not to appear in England until much later.

literature

David Greer (Ed.): Musicke of Sundrie Kinds . Reprint. London: Brian Jordan 1978. ISBN 0-85417-554-7

Individual evidence

^ Konrad Ragossnig : Handbook of the guitar and lute. Schott, Mainz 1978, ISBN 3-7957-2329-9 , p. 41.
↑ Frederick Noad: The Renaissance Guitar. (= The Frederick Noad Guitar Anthology. Part 1) Ariel Publications, New York 1974; Reprint: Amsco Publications, New York / London / Sydney, UK ISBN 0-7119-0958-X , US ISBN 0-8256-9950-9 , p. 116 f.

personal data
SURNAME	Ford, Thomas
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	English composer, lutenist and gambist
DATE OF BIRTH	around 1580
DATE OF DEATH	November 17, 1648
Place of death	London

[1] Konrad Ragossnig : Handbook of the guitar and lute. Schott, Mainz 1978, ISBN 3-7957-2329-9 , p. 41.

[2] Frederick Noad: The Renaissance Guitar. (= The Frederick Noad Guitar Anthology. Part 1) Ariel Publications, New York 1974; Reprint: Amsco Publications, New York / London / Sydney, UK ISBN 0-7119-0958-X , US ISBN 0-8256-9950-9 , p. 116 f.