Catrin Finch & Cimarrón and Dowally

Introduced by Spanish colonists, the harp is now deeply embedded in Latin American folk music, featuring front and centre in the all-star Colombian seven-piece Cimarrón, who reunite here with Welsh harp adventuress Catrin Finch, building on their previous acclaimed collaboration of 2007-10. As in Finch’s multi-award-winning partnership with Senegalese kora player Seckou Keita, the project comprises a thrillingly dynamic, fully reciprocal dialogue of traditions, styles and material: virtuosos revelling in both commonality and contrast. Led by harpist/composer Carlos Rojas, Grammy nominees Cimarrón play the wild, fiercely rhythmic joropo and llanera music of the vast Orinoco plains, evolved from Andalusian, African and indigenous sources.

Winners of a 2019 Danny Kyle Open Stage Award, Scottish trio Dowally – Rachel Walker (fiddle/whistle/vocals), Moishe’s Bagel accordionist Phil Alexander and jazz guitarist Daniel Abrahams – cook up an intensely flavoursome, brilliantly unpredictable melting-pot of Celtic, Balkan, Americana and pop elements, brimming with melodic improvisation and jazz harmony. “Something very special…truly great music-making” (BBC Radio Scotland).