A lot can happen in a thousand years. Condensing it into just two hours might be a bit of a challenge, but Saltarello Trio step up to the plate, tracing a clear musical line from Hildegard Von Bingen to David Fennessy, taking in multiple stops along the way to admire the work of Dowland, Vivaldi and Purcell.

The trio are all very familiar to Irish audiences, their collective and vast experience in the fields of classical and contemporary music have brought us many fine and memorable occasions, but for this outing they seek out the colours and textures of folk music to inform their witty arrangements. In this, they highlight the connections and similarities that exist between soundworlds of today and of hundreds of years ago, and Garth Knox’s new composition, specially commissioned for this tour by Music Network, will sit across the centuries, mediating a conversation between past and present.

The trio’s gorgeous swirling string lines and tasty percussion open a new window on old music, proving that a good tune can speak easily to all of us, no matter what the language, no matter when the time.

Garth Knox, medieval fiddle | viola d’amore | viola
Sylvain Lemêtre, percussion
Agnès Vesterman, cello