DICTIONARY OF MUSIC - El Atril

576 KING KING'S BAND OF MUSIC
KING, MATTHEiv Peter, born in London,
1773, studied composition under Cliarles Frederick
Horn. His first productions were ' Three
Sonatas for the Pianoforte,' 'Eight Songs and
a Cantata,' and three other sets of Pianoforte
Sonatas. In 1796 he published Thorough- Bass
made dear to every Capacity, and in 1800 A
General Treatise on Music, etc. , a work of repute,
with second edition, 1809. In 1817 his oratorio,
'The Intercession,' was produced at Covent
Garden. One of the songs in it ' Must I leave
thee. Paradise ? ' (known as ' Eve's Lamentation
') became very popular, and long found a
place in programmes of sacred music. King
was also the composer of several glees (among
them the popular ' Witches '), and of numerous
pianoforte pieces. He composed several dramatic
pieces, chiefly for the English Opera House,
Lyceum :— ' 'Matrimony,' 1804 ; The
Invisible
Girl,'
' One
1806; 'False Alarms' (with Braham) ;
o'clock, or The Wood Demon ' (with
Up Kelly) ; and 'Ella Rosenberg,' 1807 ;
'
all
night,' 1809; 'Plots' and 'Oh, this Love,'
1810; 'The Americans' (with Braham), and
'Timour the Tartar,' 1811 ; and 'The Fisherman's
Hut' (with Davy), 1819. He died in
London in .Ian. 1823.
His son, G. M. King, published in 1826 some
songs which were favourably received, w. h. h.
KING, Robert, Mus. B., was one of the band
of music to William and Mary and Queen Anne.
[At Christmas, 1689, a licence was granted to
him to establish a concert (Calendar of State
Papers.)] He graduated at Cambridge in 1696.
He was the composer of many songs published
in 'Choice Ayres, Songs and Dialogues,' 1684;
'Comes Amoris,' 1687-93; 'The Banquet of
Musick,' 1688-92 ; The Gentleman's Journal,
1692-94 ; and Thesaurus Musicus, 1695-96. He
composed the songs in Crowne's comedy, 'Sir
which were printed in The Theater
Courtly Nice, '
of Music, Book ii. 1685. In 1690 he set Shadwell's
Ode on St. Cecilia's Day, ' Sacred
Harmony.' In 1693 he set an Ode 'on the
Rt. Hon. .John Cecil, Earl of Exeter, his birthday,
being the 21 of Sept' commencing 'Once
more 'tis born, the happy day,' the words by
Peter Motteux. A collection of twenty-four
songs by him entitled ' Songs for One, Two, and
Three voices, composed to a Thorough-Basse for
J" Organ or Harpsicord,' engraven on copper,
was published by the elder Walsh. The date
of his death has not been ascertained. He was
living in 1711. w. h. h.
KING, William, born at Winchester, 1624,
son of George King (died 1665) organist of
Winchester Cathedral, was admitted a clerk of
Magdalen College, Oxford, Oct. 18, 1648. He
graduated B.A. .lune 5, 1649, and in 1652
was promoted to a chaplaincy at Magdalen
College, which he held until August 25, 1654,
when he became a pirobationer- fellow of All
Souls' College. On Dec. 10, 1664, he was
appointed successor to Pickhaver as organist of
New College. He composed a service in Bt> and
some anthems [a setting of the Litany remained
in use in Lichfield Cathedral, and was republished
by Mr. .J. Bishop of Cheltenham and Mr.
J. B. Lott], and in 1668 jiublished at Oxford
' Poems of Mr. Cowdey [The Mistress] and
others, composed into Songs and Ayres, with a
Thorough Basse to the Theorbo, Harpsicon,
or Basse VioU. ' He died at Oxford, Nov.
17, 1680, and was buried in New College
Cloister. w. H. H.
KING CHARLES THE SECOND. A comic
0[iera in two acts ; words adapted by Desmond
Ryan from a comedy of Howard Payne's ; music
by G. A. Macfarren. Produced at the Princess's
Theatre, Oct. 27, 1849. Palme's comedy had
before been turned into a ballet- pantomime,
'Betty,' music by Ambroise Thomas, and produced
at the Grand Opera, Paris, July 10,
1846. G.
KING SAUL. See Satjl (2).
KING'S BAND OF MUSIC, THE. The
custom of the kings of England to retain as part
of their liouseliold a band of musicians, more or
less numerous, is very ancient. We learn that
Edward IV. had 13 minstrels, ' wdiereof some
be trompets, some with shalmes and smalle
pypes.' Henry VIII. 's band in 1526 consisted
of 15 trumpets, 3 lutes, 3 rebecks, 3 taborets, a
harp, 2 viols, 10 sackbuts, a fife, and 4
drumslades. In 1530 his band was composed
of 16 trumpets, 4 lutes, 3 rebecks, 3 taborets,
a harp, 2 viols, 9 sackbuts, 2 drumslades, 3
minstrels, and a player on the virginals. Edward
VI. in 1548 retained 8 minstrels, a player on
the virginals, 2 lutes, a harper, a bagpiper, a
drumslade, a rebeck, 7 viols, 4 sackbuts, a Welsh
minstrel, and a flute player. Elizabeth's band
in 1581 included trumpets, violins, flutes, and
sackbuts, besides musicians whose instrmnents
are not siiecified ; and six j'ears later it consisted
of 16 trumpets, lutes, harps, a bagpipe, 9
minstrels, 2 reljecks, 6 sackljuts, 8 viols, and 3
players on the virginals. Charles I. in 1625
had in his piay 8 ]jerformers on the hautboys
and sackbuts, 6 flutes, 6 recorders, 11 violins,
6 lutes, 4 viols, 1 harp, and 15 'musicians for
the lute and voice,' exclusive of trumpieters,
drummers, and lifers, Nicholas Laniere being
master of the band ; and in 1641 his band included
14 violins, 19 wind instruments, and 25
'musicians for the waytes, ' besides a Serjeant
trumpeter and 18 trumpeters. Charles II. in
1660 established, in imitation of Louis XIV. a
band of 24 performers on violins, tenors, and
basses, popularly known as the ' four and twenty
fiddlers.' This band not only played while the
king was at meals, but was even introduced into
the royal chapel, anthems being composed with
symphonies and ritornels between the vocal movements
expressly for them. After the death of
Charles the baud was kept up, but was somewdiat