Photo: anonymous / Public domain (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Henry Purcell is honestly one of the most heartbreaking "what ifs" in all of Western music — the guy was dead at 36, and he'd already written Dido and Aeneas, The Fairy-Queen, and enough sacred anthems to fill a cathedral twice over. What gets me every time is that "When I am laid in earth" aria from Dido — that descending bass line just refuses to let you go, and Purcell wrote it in 17th-century England, before Bach, before Handel, essentially inventing an emotional vocabulary that composers would spend the next three centuries borrowing from. He was organist at the Chapel Royal and Westminster Abbey, composing for kings and theaters alike, and still somehow managed to pack more genuine feeling into a single ground bass than most composers fit in a full career. England never really produced another one like him.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Henry Purcell
- Name (Japanese)
- ヘンリー・パーセル
- Reading
- へんりー・ぱーせる
- Born
- September 10, 1659 – November 21, 1695
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Virgo / Boar
- Origin
- Westminster, United Kingdom
- Occupation
- composer / organist / musicologist / music theorist / author
4. Personality
Motto
Private
5. Works & records
| Category | Title | Role | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notable work | Dido and Aeneas | — | |
| Notable work | Who can from joy refrain? | — | |
| Notable work | The Fairy-Queen | — | |
| Notable work | Hail, bright Cecilia | — | |
| Notable work | I attempt from Love's sickness to fly | — | |
| Notable work | Thou knowest, Lord, the secrets of our hearts | — |
6. Links
Frequently asked questions
When was Henry Purcell born?
September 10, 1659 – November 21, 1695.
Where is Henry Purcell from?
Henry Purcell is from Westminster, United Kingdom.
What does Henry Purcell do?
Henry Purcell works as composer, organist, musicologist, music theorist, author.
What is Henry Purcell known for?
Notable works include Dido and Aeneas, Who can from joy refrain?, The Fairy-Queen.
Composer — see all → · Organist — see all → · More people from United Kingdom →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.