Fretwork

Fretwork is a consort of viols based in England. Formed in 1986, the group initially consisted of six players, while it is currently five viols. Its repertoire consists primarily of music of the Renaissance period, in particular that of Elizabethan and Jacobean England, arrangements of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, and contemporary music written for them.

The group has toured all over the world, with tours of Japan and the United States, and three visits to Russia, the first in 1989, when it was still a part of the Soviet Union. They initiated a series of courses for voices and viols on the Greek island of Evvia with Michael Chance, and have also been invited twice to teach on the annual Conclave of the Viola da Gamba Society of America.

In addition to its performances of earlier music, Fretwork has been active in commissioning new works for viol consort. Its 1997 recording Sit Fast includes new works by such composers as Gavin Bryars, Tan Dun, and Elvis Costello.

Fretwork has recorded a series of discs for Virgin Classics and Harmonia Mundi USA, but currently records for Signum Records.

Their second recording of the complete Fantazias by Henry Purcell, including the two in Nomines, for HMU (Harmonia Mundi USA) was selected as Editor's Choice in Classic FM Magazine and it won the Gramophone Award on the Baroque Instrumental section 2009.

In 2008, they recorded two tracks on Ryuichi Sakamoto's album Out of Noise.

Fretwork was featured on the soundtracks of two Jim Jarmusch movies, Coffee and Cigarettes (2003) and Broken Flowers (2005). Other filmtracks include The Da Vinci Code, Kingdom of Heaven, The Crucible, La Fille d'Artagnant and many others. It has also recorded for Robbie Williams (Supreme) and Loreena McKennitt (for the album An Ancient Muse).

In March 2011, Richard Campbell committed suicide, losing his battle against a melancholy he had been fighting for years. His loss is keenly felt by all his colleagues. Wikipedia