Hyperion Records

'Musique of Violenze' ('violins', not 'violence'): Queen Elizabeth I regarded herself as something of a dancer (see picture above) and this disc contains a medley of the sort of music which was played after dinner in the royal court during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

Alongside works by such well-known composers as Byrd, Morley, and Parsons, the recording includes miniatures by several more obscure composers, and from two contemporary 'anthologies' of dance music.

As you would expect, this is music of great vigour, with that sense of drive ideal for shedding those pounds after a lavish banquet—and for getting close to 'one's favourite' …