Horses Brawl present an innovative take early music, with roots in renaissance, medieval, baroque and folk traditions they re-work, re-compose and explore unconventional techniques. A masterclass in turning one instrument into many, Horses Brawl play bowed guitar, double barrelled recorders and crumhorn solos.
Biography
Horses Brawl have been causing quite a stir with their original take on folk and early music. Formed in 2003, they have performed widely through-out England including: Queen Elizabeth Hall, Bush Hall, The Spitz, The National Portrait Gallery, Oxford Folk Festival, Norwich Arts Centre, The Whitechapel Gallery, The National Theatre, The Windsor Festival and Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival.
Their debut self-titled album released in late 2005 received highly acclaimed reviews in Songlines and The Recorder Magazine, and their performances have been editors picks in The Guardian Guide and The Independent. They have also performed on local BBC Radio, BBC Coast and have had airplay on BBC Radio 3’s Late Junction.
Horses Brawl is Laura Cannell – Recorders, fiddle and crumhorns & Adrian Lever – Guitar & bowed guitar. With roots firmly in traditional English folk and early music from Europe, they experiment with their instruments to produce contemporary arrangements on guitar, bowed guitar, double barreled recorders, crumhorn and fiddle.
Horses Brawl are making their mark by being one of the only early music groups who perform in both concert and gig settings - from Queen Elizabeth Hall suppporting the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment to the Norwich Pop Underground Convention. Their virtuosity and originality draws in even the most unsuspecting audience members and they have been hailed by BBC Radio 3 as “an early music group to keep an eye on... it’s great stuff".
Performed with vivacity and verve, they re-work and re-compose traditional and ancient music including everything from the tune to a 14th century Italian hopping dance and the mournful lament of a de-frocked monk to the Norfolk fiddle tune ‘Shave the Donkey’, which is the title track of their acclaimed EP released in 2006 on Brawl Records.
Horses Brawl recently performed live on BBC Radio 3's Early Music Show and in September 07 gave a workshop at the Royal Academy of Music.
