Richard Allison

ALLISON, Richard. b. ?1560–70, d. ?before 1610. He was a servant of Ambrose Dudley, Earl of Warwick (d. 1589/90); little is known about his musical activities other than his publications. He provided ten harmonizations of tunes in The Whole Book of Psalms: with their wonted tunes by Thomas East*, but his most significant contribution was his own collection, published in 1599 as The Psalmes of David in Meter . . . to be Sung and Plaide upon the Lute, Orpharyon, Cittern or Base Violl. The instruments mentioned in the title show that it was designed for domestic use, thus continuing a development that paralleled the singing of metrical psalms in worship (see ‘Old Version’*)...