Thomas Baltzar
Thomas Baltzar (c.
1630—
1663), German
violinist, was born at
Lübeck. He visited
England in
1656 and made a great impression on
John Evelyn and
Anthony Wood. In
1661 he was appointed leader of the king’s famous band of twenty-four violins, but his intemperate habits cut short his career within two years. Nothing like his violin-playing bad ever been heard in England before, and in all probability the instrumental music of
Henry Purcell owes much to its influence.