Thomas Robinson

Thomas Robinson (c. 1560 – after 1609? "(Julian calendar)") was an English renaissance composer and music teacher, who flourished around 1600. He taught and wrote music for lute, cittern, orpharion, bandora, viol, and singing.

Biography

Very little is known about Thomas Robinson's life, but it is possible to draw conclusions from the dedicatory pages of his works. He and his father were in service of the Cecil family: Robinson's father worked for the 1st Earl of Salisbury, Robert Cecil, and Thomas was in the service of the 1st Earl of Exeter, Thomas Cecil, who was Robert Cecil's brother. The Cecil family fostered several artists in these days, amongst others William Byrd and Orlando Gibbons.

It was before 1589 that Thomas Robinson became Princess Anne's (1574-1619) and Queen Sophie's (1557-1631) private music teacher at Elsinore, Denmark. Princess Anne was the daughter of the King of Denmark, Frederick II (1559-1588). It is presumed that Thomas Robinson must have been in his twenties then, so that his birth can be dated back to around 1560.

The Court of Denmark, like other courts, employed many well-recognized musicians from Denmark and other countries, like England, France, Germany and the Netherlands. It is known that John Dowland - the most famous renaissance lutenist nowadays - worked as a court lutenist in Denmark from 1598 to 1606. Besides Robinson's own mention of his employment there, no official record of it exists.

In 1603 Thomas Robinson published his first book, "Medulla Musicke", of which no copy survived. It was even suggested (Ward JM, see "Literature"), that it was never published at all, although Robinson seems to be referring to it in the first pages of his second book: "Right courteous Gentlemen, and gentle Readers, your fauourable acceptance of my first fruits from idlenesse, hath eccited mee further to congratulate your Musicall endeauours. [...]" From: "The Schoole of Musicke", 1603

Also in 1603, Robinson brought out his second book, "The Schoole of Musicke", a tutor for lute and other instruments. It displaced John Alford's book "A Briefe and Easye Instru(c)tion" from 1574 (an English translation of Adrian Le Roy's "Briefve et facile instruction pour apprendre la tabulature") as the most important lute tutor in England from then on.

In 1609 Robinson's third book, "New Citharen Lessons", was published. It was a cittern tutor for beginners and advanced learners.

Thomas Robinson's works for the most part consist of his own compositions. But there are also arrangements of other pieces of music, some of which are still rather popular: for instance "My Lord Willoughby's Welcome Home" (in: "The Schoole of Musicke") or "Can She Excuse My Wrongs?" (in "New Citharen Lessons") - both originally composed by John Dowland.

There is no further information available about Thomas Robinson's life after 1609. Daling.

Works

Medulla Musicke

Medulla Musicke, ("The Stationer's Company", London, 1603) was a music tutor now presumably lost. It is supposedWilliam Casey, Alfredo Colman] to have included 40 canons on the then popular plainsong Miserere after arrangements by William Byrd and Alfonso Ferrabosco.

There even is speculation [John M. Ward] "Medulla Musicke" has never been published. What counts against that is that Thomas Robinson himself seems to refer to it in his foreword to his second music tutor, "The Schoole of Musicke":

The Schoole of Musicke

The Schoole of Musicke, ("Tho.[mas(?)] Este", London, 1603), was a tutor for
lute, bandora, orpharion, viol, and singing.

Contents

# The Queens's good Night "(for two lutes)"
# Twenty waies upon the bels "(for two lutes)"
# Row well you Marriners
# A Galliard
# A Galliard
# A Plaine Song for 2 lutes "(for two lutes)"
# Grisse his delight
# Passamezzo Galliard
# A Fantasie for 2 lutes "(for two lutes)"
# A Toy for 2 lutes "(for two lutes)"
# A Galliard
# Merry Melancholie
# Robinson's Riddle
# Goe from my Window
# A Toy
# A Gigue
# An Almaigne
# An Almaigne
# A Toy
# A Toy
# Robin is to the greenwood gonw
# A Toy
# The Queenes Gigue
# Ut re mi fa so la: 9 sundry ways
# My Lord Willobies Welcome Home
# Bell Vedere
# The Spanish Pavin
# A Gigue
# A Gigue
# Walking in a country town
# Bony sweet boy
# A Gigue
# Lantero
# Three parts in one upon a [n old] ground
# Sweet Jesu who shall lend me wings
# A Psalme
# O Lord of whom I do depend
# O Lord that art my righteousnessFurthermore "The Schoole of Musicke" contains eight short pieces, seven of them called "A Psalme" in the chapter "Rules to instruct you to sing".

New Citharen Lessons

New Citharen Lessons, (London, 1609), was a cittern tutor for beginners and advanced learners. It included 53 compositions, the first 47 for four-course cittern (tuned e' d' g b), pieces 48 to 53 for fourteen-course cittern (tuned e' d' g b^b f d G F E D C BB^b AA GG).

Contents

# My Lord Treasurer his Paven
# The Galliard to the Pavin before
# A Fantasie
# Wades Welfare
# Powles Carranta
# O Cupid looke about thee
# For two Citherens in the unison (A Jigge for two Citherens)
# A Ground
# Pipers Galiard
# A Psalme
# Philips Pavin
# A Galiard
# A Galiard: Can she excuse my wrongs
# A Galiard
# A Psalme
# Passamezzo Paven
# Oft I have forsworne her company
# Galliard to the Quadron Pavin
# An Almaine
# A French Toy
# Excuse me
# Robinson Idelsbie
# Shepard shoot home
# Ioan come kisse me now
# A Psalme
# Passamezzo Galiard
# The new Hunts up
# Souches March
# Whetelies wheat-sheafe
# O Hone
# An Almaine
# An Almaine
# Robinsons modicum
# An Almaine
# Farewell deare love
# Alexander Chezum his Curranta
# Robarts Request
# The Quadro Pavin
# For two Citharens
# What if a day
# Ah, alas, thou God of Gods
# Now Cupid looke about thee
# Pauuana Passamezzo
# Mr. North his Novell
# Fantasia
# Fantasia 2
# Fantasia 3
# Fantasia 4

Others

There are some further pieces and arrangements from Thomas Robinson in other scriptures:
* Spanish Pavan (in "Add. MS 3056 (Cozens Lute Book)", c. 1595, Cambridge University Library) - a version in major
* Hay (in "Dd. 9.33", 1600, Cambridge University Library)
* Pipers Galliard Jo Dowland. Tho. Robinson (in "Ms. Dd. 4.23", Cambridge University Library)
* Galliard T. R. (in "Ms. Dd. 4.23", Cambridge University Library)
* [The Hunt's Up] T: R. (in "Ms. Dd. 4.23", Cambridge University Library)

Bibliography

* Lumsden, David (pub.) "Thomas Robinson: The Schoole of Musicke." Paris, Editions du Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, 1971, ISBN 2-222-01343-7
* William Casey (pub.), Alfredo Colman (pub.), "Thomas Robinson: New Citharen Lessons (1609)", 1997 Baylor University Press, Waco, Texas, ISBN 0-918954-65-7
* John M Ward, "Sprightly and Cheerful Musick: Notes on the Cittern, Gittern & Guitar in 16th- & 17th-Century England" in: "The Lute Society Journal 21 (1979-81): 69-70"
* G. Doc Rossi, Cittern Music of Thomas Robinson, 2007 Cetra Publishing, Michigan, USA. Contains New Citharen Lessons plus all known pieces in manuscripts. 2 volumes - Vol. I Tablature. Vol. II Commentary and transcriptions. Available in print and as eBook.

References

External links

* [http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/tab-serv/tab-serv.cgi?Robinson Works from Thomas Robinson in tablature and MIDI] - Dartmouth University, Hanover, N.H.
* [http://www.shipbrook.com/jeff/robinson/index.html Online version of "The Schoole of Musicke"] by [http://www.shipbrook.com/jeff/aboutjefflee.html Jeff Lee] (so far only six pages online)
* [http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/tab-serv/tab-serv.cgi?Robinson Compositions by Thomas Robinson in tabulature and MIDI format] to be freely downloaded from Dartmouth University (New Hampshire, USA)
* [http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/hand/Robinson.html Text extract from "The Schoole of Musicke"] aboput hand positioning in lute playing