IN the wake of his departure from folk-rock pioneers Steeleye Span, legendary fiddle player Peter Knight has been able to turn his full attention to his trio Gigspanner, pictured, and in the process establish their reputation as one of the most genuinely ground-breaking forces on the British folk scene.

Unhindered by the limits of technical ability, Peter, along with Roger Flack on guitar and Sacha Trochet on percussion, take self-penned material along with music rooted in the British Isles and with the flick of a bow, a finely chosen chord or slip of a beat, produce richly atmospheric arrangements layered in a wealth of subliminal musical influences.

The captivating nature of their set stems not only from their creative ability and vision, but the eclectic nature of the material chosen. There are eddies and undercurrents drawn from a whole palette of influences which enthral audiences right up to the closing notes.

2016 was a vintage year for the trio, with Peter receiving Fatea Magazine’s Instrumentalist of the Year Award and Best Musician in the inaugural folking.com awards, as voted for by the concert going public.

Their album, Layers of Ages, was included in many of the end of year “Best of “ lists, including The Telegraph, which gave the album a rare five stars.

The advent of Gigspanner has introduced a whole new audience to the extraordinary musicianship of Peter Knight, a violinist whom many consider to be in a league of his own.

The late author Sir Terry Pratchett, in praising Peter’s gift, wrote with typical lyricism “Peter Knight can spin the world on his Bow”.

On their forthcoming UK tour, the trio are launching their latest studio album The Wife of Urban Law.

Early reviews have been unanimous in their praise of its uniqueness, and the words imaginative, unorthodox, inventive, captivating and beautiful have been common denominators.

Gigspanner will be appearing at Helmsley Arts Centre on Friday, November 3.

To book, go to helmsleyarts.co.uk or phone 01439 771700.