Thomas Crecquillon was a Netherlandish composer of the Renaissance. He is considered to be a member of the Franco-Flemish school. While his place of birth is unknown, it was probably within the region loosely known at the time as the Low Countries, and he probably died at Béthune. Crecquillon's music was highly regarded by his contemporaries, and shows a harmonic and melodic smoothness which prefigures the culminating polyphonic style of Palestrina. He wrote twelve masses, over 100 motets and almost 200chansons. Stylistically he uses points of imitation, rather in the manner of Josquin des Prez, in almost all of his sacred works (the masses and motets), following the contemporary trend towards pervading imitation and polyphonic complexity. Unlike Josquin, however, Crecquillon rarely varies his texture for dramatic effect, preferring smoothness and consistency.