Henry Cooke

(b ?Lichfield, c 1615; d Hampton Court, 13 July 1672). English singer and composer. Active in London during the Interregnum, he entered royal service at the Restoration, quickly becoming Master of the Children of the Chapel Royal. He trained the choristers to a high standard, introducing the Italianate style of which he was a celebrated practitioner. As a composer he was less noteworthy: of his 32 known anthems and other sacred works only 13 survive, seven of them verse anthems with symphonies and ritornellos for strings. Although he used a wide harmonic vocabulary the ideas are little developed. He also wrote three court odes, secular songs, and some theatrical music for Davenant (now lost). It remained to his pupils Humfrey, Blow, Wise and Tudway to integrate the Italian style with greater artistry and thus consolidate the Baroque style in English church music.

Cooke, Henry (1788-1868), ultra-Protestant apologist. Born near Maghera, Co. Derry, he was educated at Glasgow University. He united the Church of Ireland and the Presbyterian Church against ‘Romanism’ in the Hillsborough Meeting of 1835.

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)