LASSUS, Orlando de
b Mons, Hainault, 1532
d Munich, 14 June 1594, aged sixty-two

At the age of twelve he entered the service of the house of Mantua. He began composing while in Naples, then went to Rome to become maestro di cappella in 1553 at St John Lateran. In 1555 he was in Antwerp, where his first compositions were printed. He went to Munich in 1556 to join the court of the Duke of Bavaria, singing in the chapel, and in 1563 he became head of the chapel, holding that position for thirty years, until his death.

He had a vast output of compositions, including: madrigals, masses, magnificat settings, offices, lessons, lamentations, litanies, nunc dimittis, falsibordoni, hymns, responsories, motets, chansons and lieder.