He is said to have been organist of Chester cathedral in 1599, and is believed to have been the first musical graduate of Trinity College, Dublin. He served as Vicar Choral and organist of Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin from 1609 until his death.

Thomas Bateson is known to have written church music, but only one of his anthems has survived, a seven-voice composition entitled Holy, Lord God Almighty. His fame rests on madrigals, which give him an important place among Elizabethan composers. He published a set of madrigals in 1604 and a second set in 1618, and both collections have been reprinted in recent years. He died in 1630.