Four Hand Reel
Julian Gurr and Andy Stone
News : Reviews : Biogs : Gigs : CDs : Contacts : Wessex Acoustic
Julian and Andy are quickly building a reputation as something new and fresh on the folk scene.
Four Hand Reel take their name from a dance particularly associated with the county of Dorset where they are based. However, the fact that dances with this name can be found throughout the Celtic world and beyond is intended to reflect their interest in traditional music in its broadest sense. The four hands of this duo play tunes and songs from England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Cornwall, Brittany, Galicia, North America, French Canada, Sweden, and eastern Europe, as well as several new compositions of their own.
Four Hand Reel are supporting FLOOK at Bournemouth Folk Club on Saturday October 25th 2008.
Work commitments make it hard for Andy and Julian to make many gigs but 2008 could be a big year for Four Hand Reel by securing a booking at Shrewsbury Festival over the August Bank Holiday weekend.
Hear some of the magic of Four Hand Reel on MySpace
Summer 2006 was a good season for Four Hand Reel, appearing at Folk Festivals including Weymouth, the Beggars Fair in Romsey, Swanage Folk Festival and Salisbury Folk Festival. Autumn gigs include support for Flook and support for Faustus, both in October 2006.
September 2005 saw Four Hand Reel opening the main Saturday night concert at Swanage Folk Festival, followed by Bram Taylor and the main stars, Show of Hands. It is rare for an opening act to receive calls for an encore but these two brought the packed audience to it's feet and they demanded more! The duo obliged with an extra number and set the crowd buzzing.
Autumn/Winter 2005-2006 a series of local performances at the Blue Boar Roots music club, and Wessex Acoustic Folk Club ensure steady sales of the first CD "Woven".
Reviews of the first CD "Woven"
“Great tunes and great playing. Love it!”
Sarah Allen (Flook)
“A very eclectic mix that works really well…excellent timing and tone.”
Tom Napper
“Marvellous stuff…a sparkling delight…engaging, enthralling and very
refreshing.”
Tom Bliss
“A good honest, no-frills recording that contains a great number of wonderful
tunes and some very classy playing.”
Henry Sears
“An eclectic collection of well arranged folk music from around the world on
mandolin and guitar with some intricate interplay between the two instruments.”
Karen Ryan (The London Lasses)
“‘Woven’ is refreshing and pleasant to listen to, partly because it’s
uncluttered and you can hear what is going on and enjoy the harmonies etc. It's
a lovely choice of material too, all beautifully arranged and very nicely
executed.”
Neil Davey (Dalla)
“The playing is intricate and precise without being mechanical. The variety of
material is absorbing and appealing. The tunes and performances conjure up a
whole shipful of emigrants from different communities and countries in the Old
World travelling to the New and taking their treasured music with them. The
O'Carolan piece, ‘Loftus Jones’, is a real highlight; unusual and very
beautiful.”
Tim Laycock (The New Scorpion Band)
“‘Woven’ is an album of beautiful, melodic instrumental guitar and mandolin
music…with both instruments interwoven so that the melody and the accompaniment
fuse together to an aural delight. The overall effect is one of mellow
tranquillity as the two instruments are played with such finesse that the
melodies ebb and flow, lulling the listener into another time, another world,
where one can imagine myths and fables are real and higher virtues are still
extant.”
The Wessex Muse Magazine (Issue 05 ~ December 2005)
“The quality of thoughtful poise they bring to their unique interpretation of
tunes from all over the globe is almost classical, yet that arena’s sometime
sterility is nowhere to be found, for although their timing is precise and all
internal phrasing expertly managed, there’s plenty of sympathy, passion and
conviction in the duo’s sparkling playing.”
Dave Kidman (Net Rhythms ~ January 2006)
“The playing has lightness of touch and dynamic attack in all the right places.
It also has swing, serious swing. It's a pleasure to hear other folks pushing
the boat out there, playing music that sparkles with life…a lovely piece of
work.”
Brian Finnegan (Flook)
Julian Gurr
Julian Gurr bought his first mandolin in 1989 before a six-month trip to India, simply because he thought it would be lighter and take up less space than his guitar (he was right!) Little did he realise that this was the first step along a completely new musical path, which, in early 2004, led to the formation of Four Hand Reel. His love of traditional music extends to the dancing for which much of it is intended, and he regularly calls with Bournemouth-based ceilidh band, Murphy's Lore. He also writes regularly about Celtic music for Folk on Tap, The Living Tradition, and Irish Music Magazine.
Andy Stone
Andy Stone has been a professional musician since 1979. One of the most crucial musical experiences of his teenage years was visiting and performing in folk clubs in the Fens of Lincolnshire. In 2001 Bob Smith, of Murphy's Lore fame, suggested he ditch the rock electric guitar and return to the music of his youth. Since then, Andy has worked with many local musicians including Julian Batten, Djambo, Agglestone, Blue Sun, Murphy's Lore, Black Sheep and Dancing Ledge. He is also much in demand as an accompanist for singers, where his sympathetic, subtle and emotional playing can be heard covering the full gamut of styles from jazz to folk.
His work with Julian Gurr in Four Hand Reel is the culmination of all this experience and helps to create the unique sound of this remarkable duo.
2008
March 5th Supporting Phil Beer at Wessex
Acoustic Folk Club, Upton, Poole
April 19th at Aruba, Pier Approach Bournemouth (part of the "Muse
Platform" all-day event)
August Bank Holiday weekend - Shrewsbury Folk Festival
Four Hand Reel are supporting FLOOK at Bournemouth Folk Club on Saturday October 25th 2008.
"Woven"
Moldavian Dance (Trad.) / Kalamantinos (Trad.)
To Mirth Inclined (Trad.) / Neidges Awarra (Neil Davey) / Coer Elath (Trad. with additional material by Merv Davey)
Snakes and Ladders (Andy Stone / Julian Gurr)
The Okarina (Paul Kotapish) / The Tattoo (Paul Kotapish)
Värmland Waltz (Trad.) / Tommy Bhetty’s (Trad.)
Tanz Yidelekh (Trad.) / Joan Sanderson (Trad.)
Loftus Jones (Turlough O’Carolan)
Fleur de Mandragore (Michel Bordeleau) / The Dances at Kinvara (Ed Reavy)
O Cabalo Azul (Trad.)
Blodau’r Drain (Trad.) / A Bruxa (Anton Seoane)
The Dimmers (Trad.) / Roche’s (Trad.)
CD available direct from FHR £10
To book Four Hand Reel please contact
Julian Gurr email: mandolinquent1@ntlworld.com
or
Andy Stone email: leftyguitar333@hotmail.com
or
Wessex Acoustic Folk Club - John Butcher 01202 690856 email here