William Linley
Compositions for: Alto
Sweet Echo! Sleeps Thy Vocal ShellWikipediaWilliam Linley (1771–1835) was one of seven musical siblings born to
Thomas Linley the elder and his wife Mary Johnson.
Born in Bath, Somerset, on 27 January 1771 Linley was the youngest child of
Thomas Linley and Mary Johnson (1729–1820). Educated at Harrow and then St Paul's School, additional tutoring in musical disciplines was provided by his father and
Carl Friedrich Abel.
He joined the British East India Company and was in India 1790-5 and 1800–5, holding a writership at their College in Madras. He retired from the company in 1810 and devoted himself to singing, composing glees and songs and writing literature. He bequeathed his collection of family portraits to Dulwich Picture Gallery.
Samuel, William's brother
Ozias, William's brother
Ozias as a boy
Maria, William's sister
Elizabeth (left) and Mary (right), William's elder sisters
Elizabeth