Opening the 2026/27 Future Folk series are two artists at the edges of modern folk. Jacken Elswyth and Elspeth Anne weave banjo, voice, drone and distortion into something strange and compelling. Drawing on tradition but never settling for it, their music drifts between the ancient and the experimental — stark, atmospheric, and full of feeling.

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Jacken Elswyth is a London-based folk musician, banjo player, and instrument builder. In her music making, she is focused on exploring traditional tunes, developing extrapolations on folk styles and techniques, and investigating drone, ambience, and improvisation within and beyond folk music. She organises the Betwixt & Between tape series as one avenue of these investigations. She plays and records solo and in collaboration – with Shovel Dance Collective, Sullow, and others. She also builds and repairs banjos and other instruments, with a focus on folk craft and vernacular styles. This practice and these instruments inform and facilitate her music making.

Elspeth Anne is a multi-instrumentalist performer reimagining the traditional folk music of the British Isles, drawing in alt-country and punk influences to create a mesmeric, dark sound of drones and guitar, with the voice as the central focus. Based on the Welsh-English border, her practice is informed by the wilder landscape and the liminal undercurrent of the area.

This event will last for approximately 90 minutes with an interval.

Description supplied by the event organiser.