Spiro | |
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 Band photo from 2010 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Bristol, England |
| Genres | Contemporary acoustic,instrumental,minimalist,dance,folk |
| Years active | 1993 (1993)–present |
| Labels | Real World Records |
| Members | Jane Harbour Alex Vann Jason Sparkes Jon Hunt |
| Website | Spiromusic.com |
Spiro is an English instrumental musical group based inBristol, England, consisting of Jane Harbour (violin, viola) Alex Vann (mandolin) Jason Sparkes (piano accordion) and Jon Hunt (guitar).[1] To date they have released four albums on the UK labelReal World Records.[2]
The band was formed in 1993 by violinist Jane Harbour, who quickly became the group's main composer and whose classical and electronica influences met with the punk influences of Vann and Hunt.[3] Their early experiments centred around reworking traditional folk tunes, particularly those of the North of England, but Harbour's growing fascination with minimalist systems began to impact on the group and were evident by the time of the independently releasedPole Star (1997), which fused both influences.[4] The album was critically well received, and the band continued to play live, including writing and performing for theatre.[5] However no further albums were released until the BBC's use of several Pole Star tracks brought them to the attention of manager Alan James and Real World Records, for whom they have recorded three further studio albums,Lightbox (2009),Kaleidophonica (2012) andWelcome Joy and Welcome Sorrow (2015).[3] The latter two in particular largely feature original melodies and more intricate composition.[6] Real World also re-releasedPole Star (2014), a vinyl-only compilation albumRepeater (2016) and a mini-album,The Vapourer (2013), with live recordings by the group and Moog versions of two of their compositions byPortishead'sAdrian Utley.[7] The band have toured internationally, and in 2016 received nominations for theBBC Folk Awards andSonglines Awards.[8][9]
Harbour's solo work included writing for theatre, live film and TV, and for other ensembles including the experimental project The Small Mammal Mirror.[10] Her orchestral workKynde, aBBC Radio 3 commission, was performed live on Radio 3 by theBBC Concert Orchestra and theBBC Singers on 31 March 2017, conducted byMartin Yates.[11]
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