Jacobus Gallus

Jacobus Gallus, also known as Jacob Handl or Jacob Händl, was a late-Renaissance composer of presumed Slovene ethnicity. He was born in Carniola, part of the Habsburg lands in the Holy Roman Empire, and lived and worked in Moravia and Bohemia during the last decade of his life. His work represented the Counter-Reformation in Bohemia, mixing the polyphonic style of the High Renaissance Franco-Flemish School with the style of the Venetian School. Gallus was prolific, with over 500 works attributed to him, including his notable six-part Opus musicum, a collection of 374 motets. He passed away on July 18, 1591, in Prague.