Narthen – Icicles and Inglenooks

The winter season, whilst often cold, can be thawed by heart-lifting music that includes polyphonic, four-part, unaccompanied carols from Yorkshire and beyond and tunes that make you want to dance. Thrown into this music season’s mix may be irreverent songs about pheasants and other seasonal fair. The Narthen show aims to thaw your icicles and warm your inglenooks.

Multi-instrumentalists and singers, the range of sound that they are able to produce is mind boggling. There is a huge dollop of humour in their shows and a wide range of material. Their performances at Folk Weekend Oxford April 2023 resulted in a new description “The mighty Narthen.”

The term ‘Narthen’ is akin to ‘Now then,’ ‘what gives,’ ‘what’s happening now?’ Here is what’s happening now. Our aim, no matter the line-up, has always been to sing and play the songs and tunes that reflect our individual personalities and tastes. From the tradition through to modern times, anything goes, and that material is expressed through vocal harmony and a large variety of instruments. All sing, all play, and the instruments include soprano sax, clarinet, whistles, fiddles, viola, hammered dulcimer, tenor guitar, diatonic accordion, and hurdy gurdy. Expect the unexpected from Jo Freya, Fi Fraser, Sarah Matthews, and Doug Eunson.

Jo Freya – Soprano Sax, Clarinet, Whistles and vocals
Fi Fraser – Hammered Dulcimer, Fiddle, Vocals
Sarah Matthews – Violin, Viola, Vocals
Doug Eunson- Diatonic Accordeon, Hurdy-Gurdy, Vocals

About the Gig

This event will be held live on Zoom, with a remote sound engineer for high-quality sound. Our gigs allow interaction between artists and audiences, so the artist can hear you applaud and you can even have the chance to ask them any burning questions.

Tickets are £18, with the option to pay a bit less (£12) or a bit more (£30) depending on what is affordable for you. You only need one ticket per household.