Take Five: Fretwork in Sheffield

By Phil Parker, 04 February 2026

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“but this was a programme playing games of its own”

Reviewed at Crucible Playhouse, Sheffield on 3 February 2026

Bach, Fantasia in G Major, BWV572

Gibbons, Two In Nomines in 5 parts

Debussy, Préludes, Bk 1 no. 8: La Fille aux cheveux de lin (The girl with the flaxen hair)

Purcell, Fantasy upon One Note for 5 viols in F major, Z 745

Baldwin, Proporcions to the Minum à4

Parsons, In Nomine III

Tye, Trust

Desmond, Take Five In Nomines

Pärt, Fratres

Weelkes, In Nomine in 5 parts

Gough, Birds on Fire I

Byrd, Fantasia "2 parts in 1 in the 4th above"

Byrd, Browning

Beamish, Running Up That Hill

Fretwork

Tenderness and passion from Stile Antico and Fretwork

Nick Boston, 15th August

Ancient and modern Shakespeare settings, and music from Shakespeare's contemporaries given tender and passionate readings in a varied programme from Fretwork and Stile Antico.

*****

Drake's voyage explored by Orlando Gough

Imogen Phoebe Webb, 14th June

An exceptional performance of Orlando Gough's The World Encompassed by six-strong viol ensemble, Fretwork.

****1

Proms Chamber Music 8: Dowland's seductive melancholy with Ian Bostridge and Fretwork

Frances Wilson, 2nd September

Amidst the furore of celebrations for the anniversaries of Verdi and Wagner, the final Chamber Prom of this season gave pause to savour the music of the great English Renaissance lutenist, singer and composer John Dowland, whose 450th birthday also falls this year.

****1

Bach stays wrapped up: The Art of Fugue with Fretwork

Paul Kilbey, 20th February

Bach’s final work The Art of Fugue, left incomplete at his death in 1750, has long been famous for (among other things) not having specified its instrumentation. It’s written in open score – each line of music, or “voice”, is given a distinct printed line, making it hard to guess what instrument Bach actually had in mind to play it.

***11

New wine in old bottles: Fretwork at the Royal College of Music

Emily Owen, 13th November

Keeping up their tradition of mixing contemporary repertoire and new commissions with early music, Fretwork presented an eclectic mix of Purcell Fantasias and a variety of modern works written or arranged for viol consort and soprano in tonight’s concert, part of the RCM’s annual viol festival.

**111

An evening with Gibbons: The Hilliard Ensemble and Fretwork at the Wigmore Hall

Emily Owen, 2nd October

Seeing both these ensembles live has been a dream of mine for a few years now, having been brought up with my father’s love of the Hilliard Ensemble’s collaborative recordings with jazz saxophonist Jan Gabarek. And what better place to be transported back in time with these early music experts than the Wigmore Hall.

***11

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Phil Parker

Phil is a retired A-level English teacher who is now able to devote his life to things he really wants to do with his time. These include, but are not limited to: writing short fiction (his first collection, Girl with Fan, was published in late 2023), singing, creating programme notes for his choir’s concerts, volunteering, cooking, reading, and attending all home games at his beloved Manchester City. Alongside these is listening to classical music (live, on disc and on the radio), a lifetime’s love of which was sparked at the age of 11 when he discovered Haydn.

Take Five: five viols and – almost – 500 years of music in Fretwork’s Sheffield programme