John Browne (1453–) was an English composer of the

Tudor period The Tudor period occurred between 1485 and 1603 in England and Wales and includes the Elizabethan period during the reign of Elizabeth I until 1603. The Tudor period coincides with the dynasty of the House of Tudor in England that began with t ...

. Despite the high level of skill displayed in Browne's compositions, few of his works survive; Browne's extant music is found in the

Eton Choirbook The Eton Choirbook (Eton College MS. 178) is a richly illuminated manuscript collection of English sacred music composed during the late 15th century. It was one of very few collections of Latin liturgical music to survive the Reformation, and h ...

, in which he is the best-represented contributor, and the Fayrfax Manuscript. His choral music is distinguished by innovative scoring,

false relation A false relation (also known as cross-relation, non-harmonic relation) is the name of a type of dissonance that sometimes occurs in polyphonic music, most commonly in vocal music of the Renaissance. The term describes a "chromatic contradiction" ...

s, and unusually long melodic lines, and has been called by early music scholar Peter Phillips "subtle, almost mystical" and "extreme in ways which apparently have no parallel, either in England or abroad."

Life

Little is known of Browne's life. A John Browne from

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed ...

, believed to be the composer, was elected scholar of

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England *Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States *Éton, a commune in the Meuse depar ...

in July 1467; he is described as having been 14 years of age at the time of his appointment, making him a slightly younger contemporary of Walter Lambe, who was likely at Eton during Browne's tenure. Nothing is known of his later career or death.

Music

All of Browne's surviving works are found in the earlier folios of the Eton Choirbook, dating from between 1490 and 1500. According to the index of the Choirbook, ten more Browne compositions were originally included; five of these compositions have been lost, while two survive in fragmentary form. Browne's music is notable for its varied and unusual vocal instrumentation; each of his surviving works calls for a unique array of voices, with no two compositions sharing a given ensemble scoring. A prime example of Browne's penchant for unorthodox groupings is his six-voice

antiphon An antiphon ( Greek ἀντίφωνον, ἀντί "opposite" and φωνή "voice") is a short chant in Christian ritual, sung as a refrain. The texts of antiphons are the Psalms. Their form was favored by St Ambrose and they feature prominen ...

''Stabat iuxta'', scored for a choir of four

tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The low extreme for tenors i ...

s and two

basses Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass ...

. His choral music often displays careful treatment of the dramatic possibilities of the text and expressive use of imitation and dissonance; the aforementioned ''Stabat iuxta'', in particular, has been noted for its "dense, almost

cluster may refer to: Science and technology Astronomy * Cluster (spacecraft), constellation of four European Space Agency spacecraft * Asteroid cluster, a small asteroid family * Cluster II (spacecraft), a European Space Agency mission to study th ...

chords" and "harsh" false relations. Other works have a wide range, with lower voices against soaring soprano lines. Though comparatively few in number compared with his continental contemporaries, Browne's works are expressively intense and often lengthy, several lasting a quarter of an hour or so to perform. Many of the composers in the Eton Choirbook are represented only in this manuscript, due to the dissolution of the monasteries and widespread destruction of untold numbers of Catholic music manuscripts in Henry VIII's reign. We may never know the actual output of Browne and his English contemporaries and subsequent English composers of the early 16th century.

Works

* ''O Maria salvatoris mater'' * ''Stabat mater dolorosa'' * ''Stabat virgo mater Christi'' * ''Stabat juxta Christi crucem'' * ''O regina mundi clara'' * ''Salve regina mater misericordiae'' * ''Salve regina mater misericordiae'' * ''Ave lux totius mundi'' (lost) * ''Gaude flore virginali'' (lost) * ''O mater venerabilis'' * ''Stabat virgo mater Christi'' * Magnificat: ''Et exultavit spiritus meus'' (lost) * Magnificat: ''Et exultavit spiritus meus'' * Magnificat: ''Et exultavit spiritus meus'' (lost) * Magnificat: ''Et exultavit spiritus meus'' (lost) * ''Jesu, Mercy, How May This Be?''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Browne, John Renaissance composers Composers of the Tudor period English classical composers 15th-century English people Year of death unknown English male classical composers People educated at Eton College 1453 births