Maurice Greene was an English composer

Composer

A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...

 and organist

Organ (music)

The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...

.

Biography

Born in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

, the son of a clergyman, Greene became a choirboy

Choirboy

A choirboy is a boy member of a choir, also known as a treble.As a derisive slang term, it refers to a do-gooder or someone who is morally upright, in the same sense that "Boy Scout" refers to someone who is considered honorable or conscientious.- History :The use of choirboys in Christian...

 at St Paul's Cathedral

St Paul's Cathedral

St Paul's Cathedral, London, is a Church of England cathedral and seat of the Bishop of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. St Paul's sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the mother...

 under Jeremiah Clarke

Jeremiah Clarke

Jeremiah Clarke was an English baroque composer and organist.Thought to have been born in London around 1674, Clarke was a pupil of John Blow at St Paul's Cathedral. He later became organist at the Chapel Royal...

 and Charles King

Charles King (composer)

Charles King was an English composer and musician of the 17th and 18th centuries who at one time held the post of Almoner and Master of Choristers for St. Paul's Cathedral under John Blow and Jeremiah Clarke.-Biography:...

. He studied the organ under Richard Brind

Richard Brind

Richard Brind was an English organist and minor composer of the 17th century.-Biography:Born in England, possibly in London, in the 1670s or 1680s, Brind was a chorister at St Paul’s Cathedral as boy and young teenager. While there he sang under the directorship of John Blow and Jeremiah Clarke...

, and after Brind died, Greene became organist at St Paul's.

With the death of William Croft

William Croft

William Croft was an English composer and organist.Croft was born at the Manor House, Nether Ettington, Warwickshire. He was educated at the Chapel Royal, under the instruction of John Blow, and remained there until 1698. Two years after this departure, he became organist of St. Anne's Church, Soho...

 in 1727, Greene became organist at the Chapel Royal

Chapel Royal

A Chapel Royal is a body of priests and singers who serve the spiritual needs of their sovereign wherever they are called upon to do so.-Austria:...

, and in 1730 he became professor of music at Cambridge University

University of Cambridge

The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...

. In 1735 he was appointed Master of the King's Musick. At his death, Greene was working on the compilation Cathedral Music, which his student and successor as Master of the King's Musick, William Boyce, was to complete. Many items from that collection are still used in Anglican

Anglicanism

Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...

 services today.

He wrote very competent music in the Georgian style, particularly long Verse Anthems. However his acknowledged masterpiece, 'Lord, let me know mine end', is a Full Anthem. Greene sets a text full of pathos using a polyphonic texture over a continuous instrumental walking bass, with a particularly effective Treble duet in the middle of the work. Both this section and the end of the anthem contain superb examples of the Neapolitan Sixth chord.

Works

Greene wrote a good deal of both sacred and secular vocal music, including:

• the anthem
  Anthem
  The term anthem means either a specific form of Anglican church music , or more generally, a song of celebration, usually acting as a symbol for a distinct group of people, as in the term "national anthem" or "sports anthem".-Etymology:The word is derived from the Greek via Old English , a word...
  
   Hearken Unto Me, Ye Holy Children
  Hearken Unto Me Ye Holy Children (Maurice Greene)
  "Hearken Unto Me, Ye Holy Children" is an anthem composed by Maurice Greene in 1728. The first performance was probably given on 1 March 1728 at the King's College Chapel, Cambridge; however there is some conjecture that the actual first performance date was 25 April 1728 .A typical performance...
  
  (1728)
• the oratorio
  Oratorio
  An oratorio is a large musical composition including an orchestra, a choir, and soloists. Like an opera, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias...
  
   The Song of Deborah and Barak (1732)
• the oratorio
  Oratorio
  An oratorio is a large musical composition including an orchestra, a choir, and soloists. Like an opera, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias...
  
   Jephtha (1737)
• the opera
  Opera
  Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
  
   Florimel (1734)
• settings of sonnet
  Sonnet
  A sonnet is one of several forms of poetry that originate in Europe, mainly Provence and Italy. A sonnet commonly has 14 lines. The term "sonnet" derives from the Occitan word sonet and the Italian word sonetto, both meaning "little song" or "little sound"...
  
  s from Edmund Spenser
  Edmund Spenser
  Edmund Spenser was an English poet best known for The Faerie Queene, an epic poem and fantastical allegory celebrating the Tudor dynasty and Elizabeth I. He is recognised as one of the premier craftsmen of Modern English verse in its infancy, and one of the greatest poets in the English...
  
  's Amoretti (1739)
• a collection of anthem
  Anthem
  The term anthem means either a specific form of Anglican church music , or more generally, a song of celebration, usually acting as a symbol for a distinct group of people, as in the term "national anthem" or "sports anthem".-Etymology:The word is derived from the Greek via Old English , a word...
  
  s (1743), of which the best-known is Lord, let me know mine end.
• the opera Phoebe (completed 1747)

He also published keyboard music, including:

• Choice Lessons, for harpsichord or spinet (London, 1733)
• 6 Overtures … in Seven Parts, arranged for harpsichord or spinet (London, 1745)
• A Collection of Lessons, for harpsichord (London, 1750)
• Twelve Voluntarys, for organ or harpsichord (London, 1779)

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