We are happy to announce two concert dates with our Old Viols programme, in Buxton and Tewkesbury, this summer. For more details please see our diary page which will be updated with links and ticketing information nearer the time. Tewkesbury will be just Henrik and Caroline without continuo, and we will be playing some tasters from our new CD programme, to be recorded later this year!

We were delighted to read a review of our Old Viols CD on Early Music Review. D. James Ross writes:

“..a beautifully varied programme… the stars of this recording are the “Old Viols” whose sonorous tone and immediacy of articulation belie their extreme old age….it is thrilling to hear these remarkable musical survivors in the hands of expert players such as Persson and Ritchie, while the selection of repertoire, which goes far beyond the obvious, provides a compelling picture of music-making in the 17th and early 18th centuries.”

You can read the full review here (scroll down!)

We had two fantastic concerts in Folkestone and Culmstock in September – many thanks if you came to hear us! It was a treat to take the Old Viols programme to new places. We strongly recommend following Folkestone Early Music and Blackdowns Early Music Projects, both series have some wonderful concerts in very special venues.

Both concerts were supported by a grant from Continuo Foundation and we are, as ever, so grateful for their support. Please do consider subscribing to Continuo Connect to be the first to hear about a myriad of Early Music events across the UK!

Now on to the next bit of exciting Newes – we are planning a new CD! This time we are going back a few decades to the 1660s and the musical world of Restoration London. What would two viol players have played then, if they had a spare few minutes for a bit of chamber music? Watch this space for further developments and remember you can follow us on Instagram , Youtube and of course on our own Continuo Connect page too!

Rehearsing in The Grand in Folkestone

We were delighted to read some recent critical responses to our CD, Old Viols. Patrick Erickson, reviewing for The Viol, writes:

“I have not heard Jenkins played just like this and the baroque guitar’s rhythm is making these twisting viol melodies run feverishly through my ears. I had to listen to that suite over and over again…..it is really special when historical performance practitioners make their recordings on original instruments. Although it is not always possible, this key factor brought an added dimension to this whole music project and it enriched the music listening experience. The energy and varied affect that these performers are able to bring to the music was enjoyable“.

Andrew Benson-Wilson writes that “the sound and recording quality (from Barn Cottage Recordings) are…impressive – as is the playing…. The programme is very well-balanced, and the accompaniments are well-chosen“. You can read Andrew’s full review here

We are delighted to have been awarded a grant from Continuo Foundation to continue our tour of the Old Viols programme to new venues in the South East and South West of the UK. More details coming very soon!

You can also follow us on YouTube and Instragram @newevialles

We are delighted to be starting the new year with two recitals of our CD programme, Newe Vialles/Old Viols. The first is in London on January 25th and is a great opportunity to catch the CD programme live if you missed the launch concert in November.

Then we have a concert in Cambridge on March 7th, which promises to be very special as we will perform in the beautiful Christopher Wren chapel of Emmanuel College, a venue exactly contemporary with our instruments and with the music!

If you would like a copy of either CD – Old Viols or The Edward Lewis Viol of 1703 – these are available from our label, Barn Cottage Records, and will be available for purchase from us at the London concert on January 25th.

And finally – we now have some more videos from the recording on our YouTube channel! Our handle is @NeweVialles, please have a look and consider sharing and subscribing, it helps us a lot to make this programme visible to a wider audience!

Thank you so much to everyone who came to our concerts in London and Worcester this week. We were delighted to meet so many supporters and to perform some of the pieces from the recording for you. There is still time to catch us in Birmingham on Friday 8th November so we hope to see some of you there (and there will be CDs available for purchase there too!)

On that note, our CDs will be available to order from Barn Cottage Records from mid-November onwards, and also available from them as a digital download.

You might have heard us on the Early Music Show on Sunday 27th October – there is still time to listen online if you missed it!

Our wonderful supportive friends at Continuo Foundation have published an article about our recording project, complete with a sneak preview video – you can read, and watch, here!

We have had a busy summer, editing our CD and putting together the material for the booklet. It is all looking, and sounding, great!

We are launching the CD in London on November 1st, with a concert and drinks reception in the Swedish Church (very near Edgware Road tube) – for more information please see here! Tickets will be available on the door but you can reserve seats by emailing us at contact@newevialles.co.uk. We would love to see you there!

We are very grateful to the Continuo Foundation for their support for the London event, and also for supporting the production of the videos which will accompany the CD. More details on those soon!

Then we will be touring the CD programme to Worcester and Birmingham so if you can’t come to the London event, there is the chance to catch us elsewhere in the UK that very same week. Further concerts of this programme are planned for Cambridge and London in early 2025, details to be updated here and on social media very soon!

Henrik will also be launching his solo CD at the November 1st event, featuring the beautiful Edward Lewis viol you see below.

We hope very much to see you at one of our concerts – for more details or reservations for the London event, please do get in touch using the email above or via our website!

We had a wonderful week in February recording our two historical viols; in one week we recorded both a duo CD with Caroline and Henrik accompanied by Lynda and our guest James Akers, and a complete solo CD for Henrik too. Our crowdfunding campaign is still open and we would be delighted to have your support! As we are sure you are aware, raising funds for recordings is now often down to the artists themselves, and we are very grateful for any support you can give us as we bring this very special project to life. Also, watch this space for news of our CD launch tour in Autumn 2024!

We are delighted to announce a recording project featuring Henrik and Caroline on viols, Lynda on theorbo and our guest James Akers on baroque guitar. Please watch this space for more details, we will upload a link to our crowdfunder soon!