‘Jump for Joy’ is a collection of Carnival Band favourites put together for the return of the Crickhowell Choral Society’s Music Festival at the May Bank Holiday weekend.

The festival celebrated it’s 25th anniversary in 2019 and makes a welcome return this year after a long Covid break. The Carnival Band will be the opening performance on April 29 and is a rare opportunity to see a truly extraordinary collection of rule bending musical originality.

What makes the band different is that they’ve thrown out convention and brought folk, classical, contemporary, baroque, medieval and Arabic music together, moving effortlessly between the genre and adding a sprinkling of rock music and theatre. Their musical training and backgrounds mean they are uniquely placed to dish out such variety leading to 11 CDs including several with Maddy Prior, formerly lead singer with Steeleye Span.

The collection of instruments they will play is equally diverse, everything from the blare of shawms, bagpipes and electric guitars to the gentler tones of Turkish clarinet and the renaissance cittern.

During nearly 40 years of music-making, the Carnival Band has amassed a wealth of songs and tunes from around the world, spanning five centuries. This concert presents some of their favourites. It is partly a celebration of a return to concert life after Covid and partly a recognition of the role music has in our lives during these troubled times.

The music the band performs will be chosen in the days leading up to the performance and the evening is sure to include renaissance dances from France, songs and ballads from the London of Samuel Pepys, and country dance tunes from Jane Austen’s era. Going further afield there could be music from Sudan, Louisiana, Sweden, Macedonia and elsewhere. There will definitely be some music from Ukraine.

For further information and to buy tickets, visit crickhowellchoralsociety.org or call 01873 810209