The Maniacs

Old English tunes and young English players have been making hay over the past few years with the likes of Leveret, Spiro, Tom Kitching and others dipping into a deep well of obscure regional song books and refashioning them for 21st-century folk audiences, proving that a great little tune isn't just reserved for the Celtic nations. Accordionist Paul Hutchinson, one half of the brilliant Belshazzar's Feast with Paul Sartin, has spent many years exploring this English mother lode of tunes, and the ten pieces that make up this set of ‘decomposed 18th century dance music’ are drawn from three rare tune books in his collection, recently collected anew in Sixty Country Dance Tunes (1786-1800) for any interested player.

The Maniacs feature Seona Pritchard on violin and viola, cellist Gill Redmond and Karen Wimhurst on clarinets (she was also Hutchinson's partner in 2015's excellent Pagoda Project). It's a gorgeous set, ranging from the stately and sombre – they must have liked the slow dances back in the day – to more lively steps. So ‘Hopeless Love’ really does carry that unhappy pelt behind it while the following ‘Roodulum’ is a light and airy breeze. Recorded live at Shroton Church in Dorset, this is a shining set.