Young musicians who perform a fusion of folk and early music from the 16th century using historic instruments want to bring the music they love to a wide audience.
K’antu Ensemble, a unique group of professional multi-instrumentalist musicians, are currently touring Renaissance Europe and stopping off at Hockliffe Street Baptist Church, Leighton Buzzard.
And for one of the performers it is a welcome return to home ground. Cellist Andrew Hopper, 23, of Cooper Drive, studied with Beds Youth Music Service and played in Beds Youth Orchestra before joining K’antu.
The former Cedars student said: “Playing with K’antu has given me the opportunity to perform a very unusual repertoire with an interesting selection of musicians at venues and festivals across the UK.
“It’s always nice to come home and share what you’ve been doing with the people you grew up with.”
Formed in 2011, the Ensemble consists of seven conservatoire-educated multi-instrumentalist musicians from all over Europe, and is named after an ancient Bolivian and Peruvian style of music and dance, and this ensemble.
Between the seven musicians, among their many instruments are: violins, cello and gamba, archlute, baroque guitar and lute, recorders of many shapes and sizes, cornetti, flute, baroque oboe, three hole pipes, drums and tambourine, rackett, rauschpfiefe and crumhorns, as well as lots of singing.
Singer and violinist, Ruth Hopkins, said: “K’antu Ensemble was set up to explore unusual repertoire and bring it to life for new audiences. We are currently doing concerts all over the UK and it is great visit Andrew’s home town to perform for the active musical community within which he grew up.”
See songs and dances of Renaissance Europe for yourself at the church on Saturday at 7.30pm.
For more information see www.kantu-ensemble.co.uk.