The best known of the eight masses by the English Tudor composer John Taverner (ca. 1490-1545), The Western Wynde takes its name from a secular song of unknown provenance. It is therefore what is known as a cantus firmus mass, a setting in which each section of the Ordinary takes as its root a melody heard in long notes around which is intertwined faster-moving polyphony. Often such tunes (particularly in England) had a sacred origin, and it is believed that this mass was the first by an English composer to be based on a secular melody. The setting, which as was customary with English mass settings omits the Kyrie, is scored in four vocal parts and is, of course, a cappella (unaccompanied). The melody occurs nine times in each of the four movements (Gloria, Credo, Sanctus and Benedictus, and Agnus Dei), initially in the top part and later in the contratenor or bass. Stylistically, the piece conforms to the spacious and lavish architectural polyphonic type of mass developed by English composers in the previous century; Taverner's works represent the culminating point of this style. The tunefulness of the song and its extensive and easily identifiable use almost certainly account not only for the enduring popularity of the "Western Wynde," but also for its influence on younger Tudor composers. Both Christopher Tye and John Sheppard emulated Taverner by writing their own "Western Wynde" masses. The date of composition has not been established, but some scholars believe the mass may be a relatively early work dating from the 1520s.

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