Christopher Tye

Today, he is perhaps best known for the hymn "Winchester Old", based on a theme from Acts of the Apostles, which forms the basis of the most commonly performed version in the United Kingdom of "While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks".

Cambridge University records for the academic year 1536–37 indicate that he received the degree of Bachelor of Music after "a study of ten years in the musical art";[2] from this it is supposed that Tye was born around 1505 (making him a direct contemporary of Thomas Tallis), probably in Cambridgeshire, where the family name was common and where Tye would go on to spend much of his career.

[3] For two terms in 1537 Tye is recorded among the lay clerks of the Choir of King's College, Cambridge; it was in 1536–37 that the so called "temporary" chapel (in use since the 1440s) collapsed,[4] so Tye may well have been part of the first generation of lay clerks to sing in regular worship in the iconic King's College Chapel known today.

Although it is never mentioned explicitly, it is generally assumed that Tye held a position in the Chapel Royal staff during the 1550s at some point.

[dubious – discuss] Tye is believed to have died at Doddington before March 1573 when his successor as rector was appointed, although no record is found of his death.

[6] As a pre-eminent court musician with strong Protestant leanings, Tye is generally considered to be one of the most influential English composers of his day.

[16] Nigel Davison, writing in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography suggests that given his reputation as an organist, it would be inconceivable that he composed no keyboard works and concludes that these must have also been lost.

Frontispiece of Christopher Tye's only published work, the Actes of the Apostles of 1553
Tye may have been among the first singers in King's College Chapel, Cambridge .
Painting of Edward at 9 years. Both the pose of the prince and his dress imitate portraits of Henry VIII. The child wears a broad-shouldered mantle of dark velvet over his clothes which are ornately embroidered in gold thread. He wears a prominent cod-piece and carries a dagger. His short red hair can be seen beneath his cap, contrasting with dark eyes. He looks well and robust.
Edward VI as Prince of Wales, 1546
Ely Cathedral
The " meane " of chapter VIII in Tye's Actes of the Apostles of 1553. The latter half was adapted and used as the tune of "Winchester Old", otherwise known as "While Shepherds Watched their Flocks by Night".