movement henry cooke 
___MASK26___ ( or ) is a style of Western art music composed from approximately 1600 to 1750 . This era followed the Renaissance music era , and was followed in turn by the Classical era . ___MASK26___ forms a major portion of the " classical music " canon , being widely studied , performed , and listened to . Key composers of the Baroque era include Johann Sebastian Bach , Antonio Vivaldi , George Frideric Handel , Claudio Monteverdi , Domenico Scarlatti , Alessandro Scarlatti , Henry Purcell , Georg Philipp Telemann , Jean - Baptiste Lully , Jean - Philippe Rameau , Marc - Antoine Charpentier , Arcangelo Corelli , Tomaso Albinoni , François Couperin , Giuseppe Tartini , Heinrich Schütz , Giovanni Battista Pergolesi , Dieterich Buxtehude , and Johann Pachelbel . Jeremiah Clarke ( c . 1674  1 December 1707 ) was an English ___MASK62___ composer and organist . Henry Cooke ( Captain Henry Cooke ; c . 1616 - 13 July 1672 ) was an English composer , actor and singer . At the outbreak of the English Civil War he was a Gentleman of the Chapel Royal and joined the Royalist cause , in the service of which he rose to the rank of Captain . With the Restoration of Charles II he returned to the Chapel Royal as Master of the Children and was responsible for the rebuilding of the Chapel and the introduction of instrumental music into the services . The choristers in his charge included his successor and eventual son - in - law Pelham Humfrey , as well as Henry Purcell and John Blow . Cooke was one of the five English composers who created music for Sir William Davenant ' s The Siege of Rhodes ( 1656 ) , often called the first English opera . Henry Purcell ( or ; c . 10 September 1659  21 November 1695 ) was an English composer . Although incorporating Italian and French stylistic elements into his compositions , Purcell ' s legacy was a uniquely English form of ___MASK26___ . He is generally considered to be one of the greatest English composers ; no other native - born English composer approached his fame until Edward Elgar , Ralph Vaughan Williams , and Benjamin Britten in the 20th century . Dido and Aeneas ( Z . 626 ) is an opera in a prologue and three acts , written by the English ___MASK62___ composer Henry Purcell with a libretto by Nahum Tate . The dates of the composition and first performance of the opera are uncertain . It was composed no later than July 1688 , and had been performed at Josias Priest ' s girls ' school in London by the end of 1689 . Some scholars argue for a date of composition as early as 1683 . The story is based on Book IV of Virgil ' s " Aeneid ". It recounts the love of Dido , Queen of Carthage , for the Trojan hero Aeneas , and her despair when he abandons her . A monumental work in ___MASK62___ opera , " Dido and Aeneas " is remembered as one of Purcell ' s foremost theatrical works . It was also Purcell ' s only true opera , as well as his only all - sung dramatic work . One of the earliest known English operas , it owes much to John Blow ' s " Venus and Adonis ", both in structure and in overall effect . The influence of Cavalli ' s opera " Didone " is also apparent . John Blow ( baptised 23 February 1649  1 October 1708 ) was an English ___MASK62___ composer and organist , appointed to Westminster Abbey in 1669 . His pupils included William Croft , Jeremiah Clarke and Henry Purcell . In 1685 he was named a private musician to James II . His only stage composition , " Venus and Adonis " ( ca . 1680  1687 ), was thought to influence Henry Purcell ' s later opera " Dido and Aeneas ". In 1687 he became choirmaster at St Paul ' s Cathedral , where many of his pieces were performed . In 1699 he was appointed to the newly created post of Composer to the Chapel Royal . Edward Benjamin Britten , Baron Britten ( 22 November 1913  4 December 1976 ) was an English composer , conductor and pianist . He was a central figure of 20th - century British ___MASK29___ , with a range of works including opera , other vocal music , orchestral and chamber pieces . His best - known works include the opera " Peter Grimes " ( 1945 ), the " War Requiem " ( 1962 ) and the orchestral showpiece " The Young Person ' s Guide to the Orchestra " ( 1945 ). A composer ( Latin " compn "; literally " one who puts together ") is a person who creates or writes music , which can be vocal music ( for a singer or choir ), instrumental music ( e . g ., for solo piano , string quartet , wind quintet or orchestra ) or music which combines both instruments and voices ( e . g ., opera or art song , which is a singer accompanied by a pianist ). The core meaning of the term refers to individuals who have contributed to the tradition of Western ___MASK29___ through creation of works expressed in written musical notation ( e . g ., sheet music scores ).