PETER Knight’s Gigspanner – who play Hanger Farm Arts next Friday, November 28 – has been hailed by Songlines magazine as “another milestone in folk’s rebirth of cool”.

But to classify these three virtuoso performers purely as folk musicians is to undersell them by a long chalk.

A bedrock of British traditional music is to be expected from Steeleye Span’s erstwhile legendary fiddle player.

But Gigspanner’s musical reach flirts with Eastern European, French, Cajun, African and even Aboriginal influences, transporting audiences on a “blistering pace of a musical world tour” (Folkcast), prompting Sir Terry Pratchett to write “Peter Knight can spin the world on his Bow”.

Peter says of Gigspanner’s live performances “The audience can expect good music, played with commitment by three musicians who are constantly looking to better themselves musically as individuals, and within the context of the band.

“People frequently comment that our gigs are never the same twice because the music is ever changing within the arrangements.

We put it together that way.

Note for note has its place within a performance, but to remain open to the possibility that the music might want to take you somewhere else all of a sudden, is something that we value.

Regardless of musical interests, audiences will not leave with an empty feeling”

Peter has accrued a lifetimes worth of accolades across a career spanning two folk revivals.

Martin Carthy named Peter as one of his ‘great teachers’ during his acceptance speech (Lifetime Achievement Award) at the recent BBC Folk Awards.

Within Gigspanner, Peter’s musicianship is further enhanced by the flawless playing of Roger Flack on guitar and Vincent Salzfaas on congas and djembe.

Both have been described as “powerful and intelligent musicians in their own right” (Geoff Boudreau, Rye Arts Festival).

As a founding member of Celtic-Rock Band The Tabs, Roger is primarily a rock musician who shares Peter’s affinity with traditional material, while Vincent who has studied his craft in Senegal and Cuba, adds another dimension, one that is distinctly multi-cultural.

As R2 magazine noted, it is Vincent’s musical presence that seals the deal with regard to what makes ‘Gigspanner different’.

  • Starts 7.30pm. Tickets: £14/£12 concessions Hanger Farm Arts Centre, Totton, Southampton SO40 8FT. Tel: 023 8066 7683