Read more about Balladeste
Paving the way for an emerging new genre of Contemporary Classical meets Folk in its broadest form - Indo-Baroque meets alt-folk minimalism - Balladeste string duo is a long term creative partnership between violinist - composer Preetha Narayanan and cellist-composer Tara Franks. Having worked together for over 10 years, the duo has developed a unique way of writing, weaving in and out of each other’s voices as musicians and composers. Exploring the versatility and sound potential of just two string instruments, Balladeste create a musical narrative that is both ancient yet contemporary, devotional whilst pastoral, with original compositions that are vibrant, experimental, melodic and contemplative in quality.
Since the release of their second album ‘Beyond Breath’ the duo have been featured on BBC Radio3-In tune, BBCRadio4 Woman’s Hour and Soho Radio with Max Reinhardt to name a few. With two albums of all original music to date (4* Songlines 2021, The Musician Top Pick 2017), they have also enjoyed a rich array of musical experiences individually and collectively including collaborations with the likes of Kae Tempest, Anoushka Shankar, Jocelyn Pook, Jasdeep Singh and Bernhard Schimpelsberger.
Balladeste string duo will create a 30 minute sonic experience with electronics and extended string ensemble, exploring deep listening, stillness, trust and dialogue through improvisation - 'Sacred Spaces'. Emerging as a theme through the creation of their celebrated second album 'Beyond Breath', this new work/sound experiment will delve into what it means to be sacred, beyond genre and beyond boundaries through creating an immersive, reflective space for the players as well as the listener. Aiming to push their duo boundaries in improvisation, they will use the residency at Snape to explore how to use Improvisation as a compositional tool and also as a full performance in itself - free from genre whilst holding integrity to the modal sound world they have co-created.