Thomas Lupo the elder facts for kids

Thomas Lupo (born 1571 – died 1627) was an English musician and composer. He played the viol, which is a string instrument similar to a cello. Thomas lived during the time of Queen Elizabeth I and King James I. He was very important in creating music for groups of viols, along with other famous composers like Orlando Gibbons and John Coprario.

Life of Thomas Lupo

Thomas Lupo came from a family of talented musicians. His father, Joseph Lupo, was a string player and composer from Venice, Italy. Joseph first moved to Antwerp, then settled in London, England, where Thomas was likely born.

In 1588, when Thomas was only 16 years old, he joined the violin group at the court of Queen Elizabeth I. He worked there for his whole life. Later, during the time of King James I, he also played music for Prince Henry (after 1610) and Prince Charles (after 1617).

In 1627, records show that Thomas was having some money problems. He had to sign away some of his future earnings to pay people he owed money to.

Thomas Lupo passed away in London, probably in December 1627.

Thomas Lupo's Music and Style

Thomas Lupo was a key person in developing music for the viol consort. A viol consort is a group of viol instruments playing together. He also wrote important sacred vocal music, which means music for church services that was sung.

He probably wrote a lot of music for the court's violin group, but sadly, most of it has been lost over time. Some people think that many of the old, unnamed pieces for this group might actually be by Lupo.

Most of the viol music Lupo wrote was for two, three, four, five, or six parts. He wrote these pieces when he worked for Prince Charles. Many of his pieces, especially those for five or six voices, sound a bit like Italian madrigals. Madrigals are a type of song that was popular in Italy. Lupo was especially inspired by the style of Luca Marenzio, a famous Italian composer. Marenzio's music was well-known in England, partly because of a collection called Musica transalpina published in 1588, which helped make madrigals popular there.

Lupo's music for three and four viols was more experimental. He sometimes used unusual combinations of instruments, like three bass viols playing together, or three treble viols. Some of his consort music was even meant to be played with an organ.

Some of the specific types of instrumental music Lupo composed include:

• Fantasias: These are pieces that often sound like a musical conversation between instruments. He wrote many of these.
• Pavanes and Galliards: These were popular dance forms of the time.
• Almands (also called allemandes): Another type of dance music.

Interestingly, some of his fantasias were actually direct musical versions of Italian madrigals.

Family tree