Life

Padbrué came from a musical family and entered the company of "stadsspeelluiden" (city musicians) in his native city of Haarlem, but was dismissed from civic service in 1635 as a result of a long-running quarrel. From then on he supported himself as a freelance musician, and little further of his life is known. He was buried in 1670 in the Sint-Bavokerk

Sint-Bavokerk

The Grote Kerk or St.-Bavokerk is a Protestant church and former Catholic cathedral located on the central market square in the Dutch city of Haarlem...

 in Haarlem.

Works

Cornelis Padbrué published several collections of madrigal

Madrigal (music)

A madrigal is a secular vocal music composition, usually a partsong, of the Renaissance and early Baroque eras. Traditionally, polyphonic madrigals are unaccompanied; the number of voices varies from two to eight, and most frequently from three to six....

s and motet

Motet

In classical music, motet is a word that is applied to a number of highly varied choral musical compositions.-Etymology:The name comes either from the Latin movere, or a Latinized version of Old French mot, "word" or "verbal utterance." The Medieval Latin for "motet" is motectum, and the Italian...

s on texts by, among others, the poets Jacob Westerbaen

Jacob Westerbaen

Ridder Jacob Westerbaen , heer of Brantwyck-en-Ghybelant, was a Dutch poet.-Life:Westerbaen was born in The Hague, the son of a rope maker, and was initially schooled in the Staten-College, then as secretary and preacher of the Remonstrants of the Synod of Dort...

 and by the Haarlem painters Salomon de Bray

Salomon de Bray

Salomon de Bray was a Dutch Golden Age architect and painter.-Biography:De Bray was born inAmsterdam, but established himself in Haarlem before 1617, where he is registered as being a member of the schutterij that year in the St. Adrian's cloveniers...

 and Pieter de Grebber

Pieter de Grebber

Pieter Fransz de Grebber was a Dutch Golden Age painter.-Life:De Grebber was the oldest son of Frans Pietersz de Grebber , a painter and embroiderer in Haarlem, and the brother of the painters Maria and Albert. He learned to paint from his father and from Hendrick Goltzius...

. He also composed theatre music for the plays of Joost van den Vondel

Joost van den Vondel

Joost van den Vondel was a Dutch writer and playwright. He is considered the most prominent Dutch poet and playwright of the 17th century. His plays are the ones from that period that are still most frequently performed, and his epic Joannes de Boetgezant , on the life of John the Baptist, has...

.

The well-known melody from the round

Round dance

There are two distinct dance categories called round dance. The specific dances belonging to the first of these categories are often considered to be ethnic, folk or country dances...

 "'O Kerstnacht

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve refers to the evening or entire day preceding Christmas Day, a widely celebrated festival commemorating the birth of Jesus of Nazareth that takes place on December 25...

! schoonder dan de dagen", from Vondel's tragedy Gjisbrecht van Amstel is attributed to Padbrué . Moreover, there also appeared in print two instrumental Symphonia

Symphonia

Symphonia is a much-discussed word, applied at different times to the bagpipe, the drum, the hurdy-gurdy, and finally a kind of clavichord...

s by him, consisting each of a pavane

Pavane

The pavane, pavan, paven, pavin, pavian, pavine, or pavyn is a slow processional dance common in Europe during the 16th century .A pavane is a slow piece of music which is danced to in pairs....

 and a galliard

Galliard

The galliard was a form of Renaissance dance and music popular all over Europe in the 16th century. It is mentioned in dance manuals from England, France, Spain, Germany and Italy, among others....

.

Padbrué's chief work was the oratorio

Oratorio

An oratorio is a large musical composition including an orchestra, a choir, and soloists. Like an opera, an oratorio includes the use of a choir, soloists, an ensemble, various distinguishable characters, and arias...

 "De tranen Petri ende Pauli" (the tears of Peter and Paul) from 1647, also on a text by Vondel. It is considered as the first northern-European oratorio, but unfortunately not all of the work has survived.

Padbrué showed all sorts of international influences, and at most levels his works were different from others produced at that time, but the expression of the words or the "madrigalism" was always the most important factor for him.

His collection Kusjes (Kisses, 1631) set madrigals to Dutch translations of the erotic poetry in Latin of Janus Secundus of the Hague (1511-1536).

Publications

• Kusjes (1631), madrigals collection
• De Kruisbergh (1640), madrigals and motets collection
• ’t Lof van Jubal, eerste vinder der Musycke (1643), madrigals and motets collection
• ’t Lof Jubals, tweede boeck (1645), madrigals and motets collection
• De tranen Petri ende Pauli (1646), oratorio - lost