Tallis, Thomas

(born c. 1505—died Nov. 23, 1585, Greenwich, London, Eng.) British composer. An organist at abbeys and churches from 1532, by 1543 he was a gentleman of the Chapel Royal, as both organist and composer. Though a Catholic, he was one of the first to write hymns in English for the Anglican church. During Mary I's Catholic reign, he wrote Latin masses, but he remained in favour after Elizabeth I's accession. His powerful Lamentations of Jeremiah are regarded as his greatest body of work; his 40-part motet Spem in alium is his most famous piece. He also wrote three masses and about 40 other motets. In 1575 Tallis and his pupil William Byrd were given the first exclusive license to print music in England.