BOLTON Castle in Wensleydale will ring to the sound of medieval music later this year in an event billed as the first of its kind in the UK

The weekend festival of September 2-4 is being organised by the Richmond-based medieval minstrels Trouvere – specialists Paul Leigh and Gill Page – whose performances in Hawes at last year's Swaledale Festival proved popular and have resulted in this spin-off event.

For the first time in more than 500 years, spaces in the castle will resound to the music of the Middle Ages, with costumes and colour, a medieval market and workshops for visitors.

Medieval Music in the Dales will bring together specialist instrument makers to mount the finest display of replica period instruments ever put together in the UK. These will range from huge and sonorous medieval great pipes – precursor of Highland pipes – to delicate harps and lyres strung with gut, varieties of medieval guitar and lute and flutes made from wood, horn and bone.

Instrument makers from abroad who will attend include bagpipe maker Danilo Turchetti, from Padua, and guitar maker Ugo Casalonga from Corsica.

Trouvere is billed for the main Saturday night concert, joined by internationally renowned medieval harpist Leah Stuttard, along with duo Steve Tyler and Katy Marchant playing on hurdy gurdy, bagpipes and shawm, and a new wind band, Blondel, playing 15th century music on shawms, recorders and bagpipes.

These and other professional and amateur medieval musicians from across the country will perform in and around the castle during the daytime.

Trouvere has been playing medieval music and giving workshops in schools for more than a decade. Paul Leigh studied at Ripon and is a trained flautist and classical guitarist. Gill Page is a medieval historian and musician.

Workshops include medieval dance, instrument performance and maintenance, singing and the chance to learn to make medieval reeds. A medieval banquet will be held on the Friday night and the market runs throughout the weekend. For full details and tickets, see medievalmusicinthedales.co.uk.