Thomas Weelkes

Thomas Weelkes (* 1576, † 1623) was an English composer and organist of the late Renaissance.

Weelkes was between 1598 to about 1601 organist at Winchester College and received in Oxford the degree of Bachelor of Music. Since 1602 he was organist and Informator choritarum at the Cathedral in Chichester, until he was dismissed in 1617 because of drunkenness.

Weelkes ' meaning in the English music history is based equally on madrigals as to his church music. In his work he madrigal differed from contemporary popular English taste by his preference for harmonic and contrapuntal boldness.