Spem in alium is a 40-part Renaissance motet by Thomas Tallis, composed in c. 1570 for eight choirs of five voices each. It is considered by some critics to be the greatest piece of English early music. H. B. Collins described it in 1929 as Tallis's "crowning achievement", along with his Lamentations.
Composer Thomas Tallis
The obscure origins of "Spem in alium" are strongly linked with the former Nonsuch Palace in Surrey
According to some accounts, Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk commissioned the motet from Tallis.
Janet Cardiff's art installation, Forty Part Motet (2001) in the ARoS Aarhus Kunstmuseum, Denmark
Thomas Tallis was an English composer of High Renaissance music. His compositions are primarily vocal, and he occupies a primary place in anthologies of English choral music. Tallis is considered one of England's greatest composers, and is honoured for his original voice in English musicianship.
Around 1538, Tallis was appointed to serve at Waltham Abbey in Essex
Tallis's pupil William Byrd