William Horwood

Who was William Horwood?

William Horwood, also Horewud, was an English polyphonic vocal composer in the late-medieval period. In 1470, he was a singer at Lincoln Cathedral, in 1476, he was a vicar choral at Lincoln, and from 1477 until 1484, he was the Cathedral choirmaster. He has three complete pieces and one incomplete piece in the Eton Choirbook, and one incomplete piece in a York manuscript.

Horwood's "Magnificat secundi toni a 5" bears a strong resemblance to compositions of his near contemporary Josquin des Prez, so much so that he might easily be mistaken for Josquin upon first audition. No mention is made of Horwood among the listing of Josquin's contemporaries in Grout; neither is the Eton Choirbook mentioned in Grout.

A very scanty on-line article – only a thumbnail description of the composer – is present on WBAI producer Chris Whent's Here of a Sunday Morning site. Virtually no other information is available on the internet.