Francisco de Penalosa Biography

The Spanish composer Francisco de Peñalosa was held in high esteem, praised by his near contemporary Cristobal de Villalón as better than Apollo, the inventor of music. He joined the royal chapel in 1498 and served as maestro di capilla to a grandson of King Ferdinand. With the death of the King in 1516 and the accession of Charles V, with his own capilla flamenca, he left the Spanish court, serving briefly in Seville at the cathedral. In 1517 he became a member of the papal chapel of Pope Leo X. On the latter's death in 1521 he returned to Seville, where he had intermittently held a disputed benefice in absentia over a number of years. He died there in 1528. His principal compositions include Mass settings, motets and hymns, with a small number of secular vocal works.