“With the Gigspanner Big Band, Peter Knight has assembled a group of musicians intent on making some of the most important and exhilarating art ever to sit under the banner of folk music” FRUK
“Amazing…a force to be reckoned with – they storm every stage they walk on” Mike Harding
The Gigspanner Big Band are a unique force in British folk music…
Their high-energy, virtuosic performances appeal equally to traditionalists and to those looking for something more experimental, and they have garnered praise from publications as varied as fRoots, The Telegraph and The Wire, where they were described as ‘melodically folk-rooted yet open and innovative beyond the constraints of genre’
Beginning life as a trio – with legendary Steeleye Span fiddle player Peter Knight being joined by percussionist Sacha Trochet and guitarist Roger Flack – the line-up has been expanded to form the Gigspanner Big Band, with acclaimed multi-instrumental duo Edgelarks (Phillip Henry and Hannah Martin – BBC Folk Awards ‘Best Duo’) and Bellowhead co-founder and melodeon player extraordinaire, John Spiers, joining the fray.
Characterised by riotous inventiveness, technically gifted individual playing and subtle collaborative interaction, this coming together of several of the biggest names on the folk-roots scene, combines a deep knowledge of roots traditions with a ceaselessly boundary pushing approach.
The new six-piece line-up released their debut album, Natural Invention, in 2020.
https://www.gigspanner.com/gigspanner-big-band
Each year in partnership with English Folk Expo we work with an international territory to highlight new talent and ensure Manchester Folk Festival continues to celebrate a global talent. This year we welcome artists from Hungary.
Using the name given to musicians playing traditional folk music in Hungarian villages, MUZSIKÁS perform an exciting musical experience where the audience is transported back to the remote Hungarian village atmosphere – where traditions survived through the centuries.
Members of the group play and improvise in the style of the old traditional Hungarian folk bands in which the solo violin and the song typically were accompanied by the three-stringed viola and the contrabass. The music of MUZSIKÁS can be characterized as the traditional arrangements of authentic Hungarian folk music featuring a style that is typical of the best village musicians. It has nothing in common stylistically with the Gypsy-Hungarian style, but is rather the true folk music of Hungary, the most beautiful melodies of which were considered by Béla Bartók to be equal with the greatest works of music.
MUZSIKÁS is the most renowned and popular Hungarian folk music ensemble worldwide.
This event is part of Manchester Folk Festival – an urban folk festival. It takes place from 21-23 October 2021, in and around HOME and the city centre. Over the autumn weekend, they present an exhilarating range of events, with the spotlight on contemporary and traditional English folk music.
