Byrd's Battel (for concert band) by William Byrd Concert Band - Digital Sheet Music

SKU: A0.1665790

Selected scenes from William Byrd's The Battel

Composed around 1590, the Battel is a suite of 12 short movements that follow William Byrd's well known work, The Earl of Oxford's March, in the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book. This wondeful example of Renaissance and Elizabethan music is one of the earliest known examples of programmatic music.

This arrangement for modern wind band draws on four movements from the original: The Souldier’s Sommons, The Marche to the Fighte, The Buriing of the Dead, and The Souldier’s Dance. Byrd’s melodies and harmonies remain intact, while the instrumentation adds color through rich brass textures, nimble woodwind lines, and dynamic percussion.

Grade Level: 3+
Duration: 5:45
Full sample recording (on YouTube)

Program Notes
Composed around 1590, The Battel by William Byrd is one of the earliest known examples of programmatic music—an imaginative suite originally written for keyboard and depicting scenes of military life. Each of the 12 short movements portray a vivid chapter: calls to arms, marching troops, clashing forces, and the somber aftermath.

Though written in a time of political and religious upheaval, Byrd’s The Battel still resonates today—as a musical portrait of courage, conflict, and resilience.