‘Solo recordings don’t come more solitary than this one from the Renaissance man of English folk, Chris Wood. His is a world populated by glorious minor chords, life-affirming songs and stomach-churning tales of urban decay. Wood’s ferocious musicality is everywhere: from the fiery cello scaffolding John Barleycorn to the somnolent guitar of Bleary Winter. Unapologetically and quintessentially English - and unmissable’ Siobhan Long, The Irish Times
In partnership with the Improvised Music Company, British Council Ireland is pleased to present the highly acclaimed award-winning English folk singer Chris Wood. On a nationwide tour which stretches from Cork to Donegal, from Dublin to Mayo, Irish audiences had a very special treat throughout March. Nominated for Best Album (‘The Lark Descending’), Best Traditional Track (‘Lord Bateman’) and Folk Singer of Year and winner of the Best Original Song with Hugh Lupton (‘One in a Million’) in the BBC Radio Folk Awards 2006, Chris Wood has ‘emerged on to the folk scene like a gentle, shy bird, to be greeted with widespread chirps of acclaim’ (The Observer).
After a beginning as a chorister in Canterbury Cathedral, Chris Wood’s first steps as a professional musician involvedplaying compositional commissions from the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre in the UK. The useof folk song as a narrative provided a strong model for schools work and he devised several successful projects in educational institutions throughout the UK. Towards the end of his time at the National Theatre, he began to establish a presence on the British folk scene with the legendary English traditional singer Martin Carthy as his mentor.
Before his 2005 landmark solo album ‘The Lark Descending’ he was best known throughout the UK for his influential partnership with English accordionist and composer Andy Cutting. He has recorded and performed with Andy Irvine, Martin Carthy, Karen Tweed and Ian Carr amongst others. His latest work has included sessions for Real World’s Imagined Village project and a slot in Billy Bragg’s Barbican concert, Which Side Are You On?, as part of the BBC’s ‘Folk Britannia’ series, which was broadcast on BBC 4 Television in Autumn 2006.
‘In a warm, dark brown voice with sparse, minimalist accompaniment, Wood is an intimate storyteller, applying such nuance and gravitas to every phrase you are imperceptibly lured into his world. He seamlessly knits the spirit of the tradition into his very contemporary parables. And it’s magnificent’ Colin Irwin, Mojo
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