Peter Knight (folk musician)

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Peter Knight (left) with Maddy Prior of Steeleye Span at the Fairport Cropredy Convention 2006

Peter Norman Knight (born May 27, 1947 in London ) is a British violinist, composer and folk musician who was a member of Steeleye Span . He also plays jazz .

Live and act

Knight learned the violin and mandolin and studied violin in classical music at the Royal Academy of Music from 1960 to 1964 . Influenced by Michael Coleman’s recordings , he turned to Irish folk music, performing in Irish pubs in London, partly with guitarist and singer Bob Johnson , who later was with Steeleye Span . From 1970 to 2013 he was part of Steeleye Span with a break from 1977 to 1980, where he worked again with Johnson . From 2013 he recorded with his band Gigspanner (with percussionist Vincent Salzfaas and Roger Flack on the electroacoustic guitar), with whom he plays fusion music from folk, jazz and African rhythms.

His classical influences and especially baroque music made themselves felt in the recording by Canon by Teleman on the Steeleye Span album Back in Line .

His other projects include:

  • In the 1970s he was secretly one of the members of the novelty pop band The Wombles (who performed in costumes based on Elisabeth Beresford 's children's books at the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest )
  • the regular tours of folk violinists in Great Britain Fest of Fiddlers (from 2001).
  • the concept album The King of Elfland's Daughter (1978, Chrysalis) with Bob Johnson based on the story by Lord Dunsany . One of the songs was by Alexis Korner .
  • under the influence of Trevor Watts he played from 1978 in his avant-garde jazz groups Moiré Music ( Arc 1985) and Moiré Music Sextet ( Saalfelden Encore ), later in the Trevor Watts Drum Orchestra .

He released several solo albums such as An Ancient Cause (1991) and The Gemini Cadenza (1998), on which he recorded and improvised himself several times with overdubbing. With the bassist Danny Thompson he released an album in 1995.

He also works as a teacher and gives master classes in the Cotswolds .

In 2016 he was named Musician of the Year by Folking.com and Fatea magazine.

He should not be confused with the British arranger Peter Knight (1917–1985).

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personal data
SURNAME Knight, Peter
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Knight, Peter Norman
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British folk musician (banjo, violin, vowel)
DATE OF BIRTH May 27, 1947
PLACE OF BIRTH London