Among the paintings in the Oxford University collection, a ceremonial portrait of a young man by an unknown artist stands out. This portrait, known through several copies and the source of numerous unanswered questions, conveys the aristocratic image of an English cavalier. He is depicted full-length, leaning on a cane—a symbol of courtly etiquette—and dressed in 17th-century fashion: a wide-brimmed hat and black cloak with a contrasting white satin collar adorned with floral motifs. His flowing, shoulder-length curls mark him as a member of the royal court, in contrast to the closely cropped hair of the Puritans, whom Royalists derogatorily nicknamed ‘Roundheads’ before the Civil War. Despite the portrait’s uncertain provenance and the lack of similar images of other English composers of the early Stuart era, it is widely believed to depict William Lawes (1602–1645), court musician and favourite of King Charles I.
The fragmentary information we have about Lawes is largely thanks to Thomas Fuller, who chronicled England’s notable figures. In his entry on Lawes, Fuller wrote that he was the son of Thomas Lawes, vicar choral of Salisbury Cathedral, and was born near that city [2, 336]. The young William studied at a free school and sang in the church choir until his talent brought him into aristocratic circles. He was taken in by Edward Seymour, Earl of Hertford, a noted patron of the arts, who—with the consent of William’s father—became his guardian. In Seymour’s household, William continued his musical training under the influential English composer Coprario, who also instructed Prince Charles. The environment of private music-making likely fostered a close friendship between the similarly aged Charles and William.
A full decade after Charles’ coronation, Lawes was officially appointed as a court musician to the ensemble For y Lutes and Voices, which performed in the King’s private quarters [3, xiii]. Little is known about his life before this point, but by the time of his appointment, Lawes had already established himself as a brilliant performer and composer. Lawes’ music was heard throughout England: in the Chapel Royal, the London theatres of Blackfriars and Cockpit-in-Court, in the homes of the nobility and gentry, and during official functions. While not as well known today as his Italian contemporaries Claudio Monteverdi or Biagio Marini, scholars consider Lawes’ music to be a refined expression of aristocratic taste [1].
Despite influential patronage, none of Lawes’ compositions were published in his lifetime. His surviving oeuvre, preserved mainly in manuscripts, numbers over 600 works. These span the genres of 17th-century English music, deeply rooted in High Renaissance traditions. His theatrical music, created in collaboration with well-known figures such as his brother Henry Lawes, Simon Ives, and playwrights James Shirley, Ben Jonson, and William Davenant, includes court masques and dramas with music.
Though never a church musician by official title, Lawes wrote numerous anthems and psalms. Scholars observe that his sacred music combines elements of late Renaissance polyphony with the stile concertante of the early Baroque. Notably, some of his psalms composed in York or Oxford (to which Charles I relocated his court at the start of the Civil War) are marked to common tunes [6]. These works alternate solo or duet verses with homophonic choruses based on hymn tunes, accompanied by basso continuo. Musicologists regard these ‘Oxford Psalms’ as attempts at compromise between Anglicans and other rising Protestant factions in the 1640s.
Lawes’ instrumental music—written for keyboard, lute, and various consort configurations—includes fantasias, dances, and In nomine settings. His ensemble works are particularly valued for their innovation and volume. English scholars group them under titles such as Sonatas, Suites, and Consorts His fantasias or fantasy-suites, modeled after the Italianized English style of Coprario, were composed for one or two violins, bass viol, and organ. These typically follow a sequence of fantasy, allemande, and galliard (or ayre), echoing the trio sonata format in instrumentation but not in structure. Many also resemble the French overture suite, beginning with a complex and striking Ouverture à la française. Suites for five- or six-part viol ensembles often include two treble parts, a tenor, and one or two basses, reduced by organ. Other suites are written for two bass viols with an independent organ part, or for three lyra-viols.
A particularly significant collection is The Royall Consort, comprising several dozen instrumental dances grouped into Setts or suites of six to seven pieces. This collection exists in two scorings: the original for two treble, tenor, and bass viols with continuo, and a copyist version for two violins, two bass viols, and two theorboes. Another important group is the harp consorts, scored for violin, bass viol, theorbo, and harp. The harp part may have been written for Jean le Flelle, a French harpist of Queen Henrietta Maria’s entourage.
One manuscript pavan is marked with the name of the Irish harper Cormac, who was in royal service until his death in 1618. Lawes used one of Cormac’s melodies as the basis for a parody composition. However, it remains unclear who, after Cormac’s death, could have performed on the Irish harp in London, as only Irish or Scottish musicians had the necessary technique—an elite status that added further allure to works for this rare instrument.
Lawes’ ensemble works reveal a predominance of dance genres. Like earlier English composers, he favored the allemande, galliard, and pavan, and helped establish the courante, sarabande, and morisca in consort repertoire. His secular vocal works—both solo and ensemble songs—set texts by a wide range of contemporary poets, such as Robert Herrick and James Shirley, adding another dimension to his legacy.
King Charles I himself mourned Lawes’ death deeply. Poets and musicians commemorated him in verse and song, often depicting him as the embodiment of Music itself. In these tributes, Lawes was compared to legendary figures of antiquity: Amphion, Terpander, Orpheus, and even Pythagoras [5]. These elegies were collected by his brother Henry Lawes in Choice Psalmes, published in London just before the King’s execution. In the preface, Henry expressed hope that William’s legacy would endure as a tribute to his loyal service to His Majesty.
Lawes’ name resurfaced in the late 19th century when early music enthusiast Arnold Dolmetsch discovered scores of consort music by Lawes and his contemporaries in London libraries in 1889. The following year, Dolmetsch performed them with his family. This sparked renewed interest in performing and studying Lawes’ vast oeuvre—a body of work that offers profound insights into the courtly musical culture of mid-17th-century England.
Bibliography:
[1] Cunningham, James. 2010. The Consort Music of William Lawes, 1602–1645. Woodbridge: The Boydell Press.
[2] Fuller, Thomas. 1840. The History of the Worthies of England. Vol. 3. London: Nuttall and Godgson.
[3] Lefkowitz, Myron. 1963. Introduction. In William Lawes: Select Consort Music, Musica Britannica, Vol. 21. London: Stainer & Bell.
[4] Playford, John. The English Dancing Master. London: Thomas Harper, 1651. http://ks.petruccimusiclibrary.org/files/imglnks/usimg/c/c9/IMSLP324643-PMLP144608-playford_dancing_master_1651.pdf.
[5] William Lawes. 2002. Collected Vocal Music. Part 1: Solo Songs. Edited by G. J. Callon. Middleton: A-R Edition.
[6] William Lawes. 2002. 12 Psalms ‘to comontunes’. Edited by P. Gameson. York: York Early Music Press.
