William Byrd (1543-1623) was an organist and composer of the Shakespearean age who is best known for his development of the English madrigal. He was a pupil and protégé of organist and composer Thomas Tallis, and they worked together for several years. Byrd's musical stature can hardly be overrated, as he wrote extensively for every medium then available except, it seems, the lute. His virginal and organ music brought the English keyboard style to new heights and pointed the way to the achievements of other English composers. During the 1580s and 1590s, Byrd's catholicism was the driving motive for his music. As the persecutions of Catholics increased during this period, and occasionally touched on Byrd and his family, he wrote and openly published motets and three masses, which are his finest achievement in sacred music, almost certainly composed for small chapel gatherings of Catholics.