| Date and venue | Title |
|---|---|
| 20-Feb-2013 Kings Place: Hall One | Bach stays wrapped up: The Art of Fugue with Fretwork |
 Bach’s final work The Art of Fugue, left incomplete at his death in 1750, has long been famous for (among other things) not having specified its instrumentation. It’s written in open score – each line of music, or “voice”, is given a distinct printed line, making it hard to guess what instrument Bach actually had in mind to play it. The work’s exceptionally complex counterpoint led many musicologists to assume, in fact, that it was primarily intended as a sort of study guide rather than something to be performed.
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| 13-Nov-2012 Royal College of Music: Amaryllis Fleming Concert Hall | New wine in old bottles: Fretwork at the Royal College of Music |
| Keeping up their tradition of mixing contemporary repertoire and new commissions with early music, Fretwork presented an eclectic mix of Purcell Fantasias and a variety of modern works written or arranged for viol consort and soprano in tonight’s concert, part of the RCM’s annual viol festival.
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| 2-Oct-2012 Wigmore Hall | An evening with Gibbons: The Hilliard Ensemble and Fretwork at the Wigmore Hall |
| Seeing both these ensembles live has been a dream of mine for a few years now, having been brought up with my father’s love of the Hilliard Ensemble’s collaborative recordings with jazz saxophonist Jan Gabarek. And what better place to be transported back in time with these early music experts than the Wigmore Hall. This evening was a feast of Gibbons, with a performance of the First Set of Madrigals and Motets of 5 Parts, apt for Viols and Voyces, which was published in 1612. Read full review... | |
| 8-Feb-2012 Carnegie Hall: Weill Recital Hall | Sublime Discourses: Fretwork plays English consort music at Weill Recital Hall |
 To see Fretwork perform live is to understand the difference between virtuosos playing together for the first time, and virtuosos playing together who know how their colleagues take their coffee. The ensemble’s great achievement has been to reintroduce the world to the sixteenth- and seventeenth-century repertoire of polyphony for viols, and it is also known internationally for expanding the repertoire with new commissions. The viol has a transparent, subtle sound, which finds more expression in articulation than in volume, but Fretwork shows how dramatic this intimate repertoire can be.
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