# My Lady Carey's Dompe

My Lady Carey's Dompe is a Renaissance musical piece, most probably written for lute and harpsichord. A traditional English dance tune, it was written c. 1520s by an unknown composer during the time of Henry VIII of England, who played various instruments, of which he had a large collection.

## History

My Lady Carey's Dompe is sometimes attributed to English innovative composer of the early Tudor period, Hugh Aston. It is in G Dorian mode and consists of an improvisatory treble line over a drone alternating between two bass notes, G and D. It may have been written for the death of William Carey, a courtier and favorite of Henry VIII, who died on 22 June 1528, and in this case, Lady Carey may refer to his wife Mary Boleyn, one of the mistresses of Henry VIII and the sister of Henry's second wife, Anne Boleyn, but also to Carey’s mother, sisters and sister-in-law. Dompe, which may come from Irish dump that means lament, can refer to a dance, a dirge, a lament or a melancholic love song.
The work appears in a single source written around 1530, British Library, manuscript Royal Appendix 58 (Roy. App. 58).

## Notable recordings

My Lady Carey's Dompe is in the repertoire of many artists including Igor Kipnis, Guy Bovet, Rafael Puyana, Ton Koopman, Peter Watchorn, André Isoir, Liuwe Tamminga, Paul O'Dette, David Munrow, Eduardo Paniagua, Brett Leighton, Grayston Burgess, Claudio Brizi.
| Year | Album | Performer | Track # | Length | Record label |
| 1990 | Lullabies and Dances | Bill Crofut and The Crofut Consort | 16 | 2:56 | Albany Music Distribution (048) |
| 1994 | A Treasury of Harpsichord Favorites | Igor Kipnis | 4 | 1:50 | Music & Arts (CD-243) |
| 1995 | English Virginals Music | Sophie Yates | 7 | 1:50 | Chandos (CHAN0574) |
| 1995 | Flower of All Ships: Tudor Court Music | Circa 1500 | 12 | 1:51 | CRD (3448) |
| 1995 | Guy Bovet à L'Orgue de la Basilique de Valère, Vol. 1 | Guy Bovet | — | — | Gallo (088) |
| 1995 | The Golden Age of Harpsichord Music | Rafael Puyana | 1 | 1:28 | Mercury (434364) |
| 1996 | The Organ at Adlington Hall | Ton Koopman | 1 | 1:47 | Capriccio (255) |
| 1997 | The Mystic and the Muse | Ensemble Galilei Nancy Karpeles (percussion) Sue Richards (Celtic harp) Erin Shrader (Fiddle, guitar) Carolyn Anderson Surrick (viol) Sarah Weiner (oboe) | — | — | Dorian (90247) |
| 1998 | Millennium of Music, Vol. 1 | — | 17 | 2:25 | Valley Entertainment (VLT 0000015023) |
| 1999 | Guide des Instruments de la Renaissance | Ensemble la Fenice | — | — | Ricercar (95001) |
| 1999 | Shakespeare: The Greatest Hits | — | 7 (CD 2) | 4:02 | Reference Recordings (3625) |
| 1999 | Vox Virginalis | Rachelle Taylor | 1 | 2:13 | ATMA Classique (22197) |
| 2000 | Alessandro Orologio: Primo Libro delle Canzonette; Intrade a Cinque Voci | Il Terzo Suono Ensemble 1492 Dià-pasòn Gian Paolo Fagotto (conductor, tenor) | — | — | Arts Music (47531) |
| 2001 | Court Jesters: Tudor Minstrel Music | Sirinu | 3 | 2:20 | Griffin (4013) |
| 2001 | Music of Tudor and Jacobean England | Peter Watchorn | 15 (CD 1) | 2:27 | Musica Omnia (0104) |
| 2001 | Wondrous Machine: Early English Keyboard Music on the Organ of the Ospedaletto in Venice | Christopher Stembridge | 4 | 1:21 | Quilisma (302) |
| 2002 | Airs & Danses de la Vieille Europe | André Isoir | — | — | Disques Pierre Verany (787031) |
| 2003 | Basilicata | Liuwe Tamminga | 3 | 1:59 | Accent (21147) |
| 2003 | L'Essor de l'Orgue en Europe de la Renaissance au Baroque | Jacques Kauffmann | 5 | 2:11 | Skarbo (1004) |
| 2003 | The Classic Ocarina | Chuckerbutty Ocarina Quartet feat. Michael Copley | 8 | 2:51 | Dorian (93260) |
| 2003 | The Royal Lewters | Paul O'Dette | 5 | 2:49 | Harmonia Mundi (907313) |
| 2004 | David Munrow: Henry VIII and His Six Wives | David Munrow | 18 | 2:00 | Testament (1250) |
| 2005 | Dictionary of Medieval & Renaissance Instruments | — | 7 (CD 2) | 1:47 | Cantus (9705) |
| 2005 | Madame d'Amours: Songs, Dances & Consort Music for the Six Wives of Henry VIII | Musica Antiqua of London | 7 | 2:21 | Signum Classics (Signum UK 044) |
| 2005 | Musica cortesana en la Europa de Juana I de Castilla | Música Antigua, Eduardo Paniagua | 1 | 4:32 | Karonte / Pneuma Classics (PN710) |
| 2005 | Musik für Orgel und Zink auf der ältesten spielbaren Orgel der Welt | Brett Leighton | 25 | 2:10 | Motette (20321) |
| 2007 | Music to Entertain Henry VIII | Grayston Burgess, Purcell Consort of Voices | 17 | 0:55 | Argo (4758582) |
| 2008 | The World's Greatest Composers [Collector's Edition Music Tin] | — | 9 (CD 4) | 1:09 | Madacy (52955) |
| 2010 | Les Grandes Orgues de Gérardmer | Jacques Kauffmann | 1 | 1:52 | Skarbo (1095) |
| 2011 | Tears of Joy: English Lute Songs and Secular Music | Zefiro Torna | 13 (CD 1) | 2:14 | EtCetera / Klara (KTC 4038) |
| 2012 | Renaissance & Danses Baroques | Barok Ensemble | 10 | 1:33 | Loreley (LY 049) |
| 2013 | Claviorgan Wonderland | Claudio Brizi | 5 | 2:28 | Camerata Records (CMCD 28244) |
| 2013 | Mercury Living Presence: The Collector's Edition, Vol. 2 | Rafael Puyana | 1 (CD 50) | 1:29 | Decca / Mercury (4785092) |
| 2017 | 16 Century Discothèque | Olesya Rostovskaya | 14 | 1:44 | Artes Mirabiles (AM170004) |
| 2018 | An Evening Hymn | Anton Batagov | 12 | 5:23 | JSC "Firma Melodiya" |