They’ve performed in Borneo, West Virginia, in many European venues and will soon be in Worthing, but they’ve never been to Pewsey before and they don’t usually do small venues.
But Cheryl Underhill who runs Pewsey Music Live, has persuaded the Newcastle-based New Rope String Band to come south for a performance (October 17) at Pewsey’s Bouverie Hall.
The New Rope String Band combine superb musicianship with side-splitting comic entertainment. They’ve taken elements of circus, vaudeville, slapstick and inspired silliness and woven them together with beautiful acoustic music.
Last year they won a prestigious Fringe award at the Edinburgh Festival. And Cheryl is sure they’ll win lots of friends and admirers in Pewsey.
Pewsey Music Live has put on seven concerts in the past twelve months. This time last year Cheryl scored a great hit with The Moscow Drug Club band – delighting Elinor Goodman who reviewed it for Marlborough News Online and securing them a spot at this year’s Marlborough International Jazz Festival.
Some Pewsey people who missed the group’s Bouverie Hall performance, also missed out at Marlborough where there was not even standing room to hear them.
More recently Pewsey Music Live has presented the very well-known folk band Mabon most of who hale from the Isle of Man. Then came the FB Pocket Orchestra who play hot jazz, blues and ragtime from the 1920’s and 1930’s.
Cheryl thinks the FB Pocket Orchestra would go down well at the Marlborough Jazz Festival. If you want a taste of their music they’re playing at the Salisbury Arts centre on 24 November and, if you can wait a bit longer, they are booked for a return gig at the Bouverie Hall in April next year.
Many of the groups Cheryl books will play a small space like the Bouverie Hall for less than their normal fee. But if the sales allow it, she likes to give them more than they ask for.
Any money left over goes to the Bouverie Hall – Cheryl is on its management committee. Pewsey Music Live’s gigs are made possible by Cheryl’s band of volunteer helpers who man front of house and look after the refreshments.
Back to the band in hand: the New Rope String Band will leave you gasping. They’re a multi-Kleenex gig – you’ll need them for tears of laughter and joy.
For details of times and tickets go to our What’s On calendar.