ABSTRACT
The origins of the Bassano family lay in the town of that name near Venice. This chapter shows that they made their way from Bassano to Venice, and discusses how they first went to the Court of Henry VIII in England in 1531, returning to settle in 1538–40. Alvise de Thomaso may have come to England as a sackbut player with other Venetian wind players in the 1520s, although the evidence is inconclusive. In 1538, Mark Anthony was back in England. A warrant dated 30 October paid him from the previous Midsummer as 'maker of divers instruments of music' to the Court. To entice Anthony's brothers to England, the King, already well acquainted with their musical talents, seems to have promised them places and financial reward. Jacomo Bassano, received trade licences from the crown in 1538 and 1542, seems to have returned to Venice by November 1544.
