Richard Davy was a Renaissance composer, organist and choirmaster, one of the most represented in the Eton Choirbook

Eton Choirbook

The Eton Choirbook is a richly illuminated manuscript collection of English sacred music composed during the late fifteenth century. It was one of very few collections of Latin liturgical music to survive the Reformation, and originally contained music by 24 different composers; however, many of...

.

Biography

Little is known about the life of Richard Davy. His name was a common one in Devon and he may have been born there. He was a scholar of Magdalen College, Oxford

Magdalen College, Oxford

Magdalen College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2006 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £153 million. Magdalen is currently top of the Norrington Table after over half of its 2010 finalists received first-class degrees, a record...

 and acted as choir master and organist at least in the period 1490-2. Churchwardens' accounts for Ashburton, Devon

Ashburton, Devon

Ashburton is a small town on the edge of Dartmoor in Devon, adjacent to the A38 Devon Expressway.It was formerly important as a stannary town , and remains the largest town within the National Park, with a population of around 3,500...

 mention a 'Dom. Richardus Dave:' from 1493-5, where he may have been acting as a chaplain or as master of the nearby school at St. Lawrence Chapel. He may then have moved to Exeter Cathedral

Exeter Cathedral

Exeter Cathedral, the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter at Exeter, is an Anglican cathedral, and the seat of the Bishop of Exeter, in the city of Exeter, Devon in South West England....

 to be vicar choral in the period 1497-1506.

Work and influence

Davy is the second most represented composer in the Eton choirbook

Eton Choirbook

The Eton Choirbook is a richly illuminated manuscript collection of English sacred music composed during the late fifteenth century. It was one of very few collections of Latin liturgical music to survive the Reformation, and originally contained music by 24 different composers; however, many of...

, with nine compositions including his most celebrated work, the Passio Domini in ramis palmarum or Passion according to St Matthew. His work is considered more florid that that of his contemporaries Robert Fayrfax

Robert Fayrfax

Robert Fayrfax was an English Renaissance composer, considered the most prominent and influential of the reigns of Kings Henry VII and Henry VIII of England.-Biography:...

 and William Cornish and may have had considerable impact on later figures such as John Taverner

John Taverner

John Taverner was an English composer and organist, regarded as the most important English composer of his era.- Career :...

.