WILLIAM BEALE

William Beale (1784-1854) was born in Landrake, Cornwall. As a village boy he sang in the church choir and later was a chorister at Westminster Abbey. For two years, he then served as a midshipman on the HMS Révolutionnaire, a 44-gun frigate which had been taken from the French, and nearly drowned after falling overboard in Cork Harbour. He worked briefly as a letter-sorter for the Post Office, but turned to music as a career, becoming a member of the Royal Society of Musicians. He won the 1813 prize cup of the Madrigal Society for his composition Awake, sweet music. He was appointed gentleman of the Chapel Royal, St. James Palace and held organist positions at Trinity College, Cambridge; Wandsworth Parish Church; and St. John’s, Clapham Rise. He was not a prolific composer and his works principally consist of glees and madrigals, although they were considered of high quality. His glee Harmony won the 1840 prize at the Adelphi Glee Club. His son, Henry Wolfgang Amadeus Beale, was a composer as well.

All are mixed chorus; some contain divisi.

SET	TITLE	VOICING	TEXT	LISTEN
	Come let us join the roundelay			LISTEN X Stop audio before closing
	The Humble Tenant			LISTEN X Stop audio before closing
	This pleasant month of may			LISTEN X Stop audio before closing