Thomas Vautor facts for kids

Thomas Vautor was an English musician who lived a long time ago, between about 1592 and 1619. He was famous for writing a type of song called a madrigal.

The Life of Thomas Vautor

Thomas Vautor worked as a musician for an important family in England. He lived with the family of Mary Beaumont in a place called Glenfield, Leicestershire. Later, he also worked for her husband, Sir George Villiers, after they got married in 1592. Mary and George were the parents of a boy who would become a very important person later: George Villiers, the first Duke of Buckingham.

In 1616, Thomas Vautor wanted to get a special music degree from the University of Oxford. This degree was called a Bachelor of Music (Mus. Bac.). He was allowed to get it if he wrote a special song for six voices. He finished it and officially received his degree on July 4th.

Around this time, the younger George Villiers, who was Vautor's boss's son, was becoming very popular with King James I. In 1619, George Villiers was given the important title of Marquess of Buckingham. Thomas Vautor honored him by dedicating a collection of 22 madrigals to him. This collection was called The First Set; being Songs of diverse Ayres and Natures for Five and Sixe parts; Apt for Vyols and Voices. We don't know much more about Vautor after this time.

Thomas Vautor's Music

Thomas Vautor wrote 22 pieces of music, mostly madrigals. A madrigal is a type of song, usually for several voices without instruments. These songs were listed in a book called Bibliotheca Madrigaliana.

His songs were very different from each other. They showed many styles from the time he lived, from older Elizabethan styles to newer ones. Some of his madrigals were written to remember important people like Queen Elizabeth I, Prince Henry Frederick, and Thomas Beaumont. One of his madrigals was even based on a sonnet, which is a type of poem, written by Sir Philip Sidney.