Ghersem, Géry (de)

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Ghersem, Géry (de)

Ghersem, Géry (de), Franco-Flemisch composer;b. Tournai, c. 1574; d. there, May 25, 1630. After serving as a choirboy at Tournai Cathedral, he went to Madrid and entered the Capilla Flamencia as a cantorcillo. In 1593 he was made cantor, and in 1598 asst. director. In 1604 he returned to Flanders and became director of the domestic chapel of the Archduke and chaplain of the oratory. His contemporaries held him in high esteem as a composer of sacred works and villancicos. A Mass for 7 Voices (Madrid, 1598) and the motet Benedicam Dominum for 8 Voices are extant.

—Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire