Jan Belle

Jan Belle (fl. 1545 - 1566) was a composer from the Franco-Flemish School. Between 1546 and 1547, Belle was a magister duodenorum (master of the choirboys) at the Holy Cross Church in Liège. He was referred to as 'de Lovanium' which indicates that he was originally from Leuven. He may also have been a Kapellmeister (succentor) at the Church of Our Lady in Sint-Truiden.[1] In 1552, the publisher and editor Jacob Baethen, who lived in Maastricht, published Belle’s probable first musical work. This was Musices encomion, a book on music theory. In 1572, the Antwerp printer Pierre Phalèse the Elder published an anthology of Dutch songs titled Duijtsch musijck boeck. This book contained six songs for four voices by Belle.