Hyperion Records

This galliard survives on its own, with no pavan, and probably dates from the 1580s or perhaps even the 1590s. Certain features of its musical language recall the textures found, in more complex form, in the Quadran galliard. Whereas the third strain of Byrd’s galliards is often livelier than the two previous ones, here he wittily holds it back, a cheekiness that is accentuated in the ornamented repeat.

from notes by Davitt Moroney © 1999