Margaret Hodsdon (virginals)
La Volta (L. Morley) Treg. Ground Pavana (Bray)
L. Montegle's Paven
Programme arranged and introduced by Betty Cole

The dedicatory titles that Byrd gave to his keyboard music offer much food for speculation. The familiar names of his noble patrons appear on the tide pages of the published works, but the names at the beginning of some of the small virginal pieces, hidden away in private manuscript collections and more intimate in their expression of friendship rather than of esteem, have so far been completely overlooked. In the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book alone there are seven of these minor mysteries. This programme, while introducing a few of the lesser-known pieces for virginals is an attempt to uncover the identity of these shadowy 'dedicatee' friends and thereby to add a little to what is already known of the private life of William Byrd.
B.C.