The Linarol Consort of Renaissance Viols draws together players who are leading exponents of the viol as both a consort and solo instrument, and focuses uniquely on their love of the instrument’s very earliest sound and repertoire.

The Consort takes its name from the maker of the original viol on which the instruments they play are modelled: all are copies of one surviving viol by the Venetian maker Francesco Linarol, who was active throughout the 16th century and currently displayed in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.

David has worked closely with viol maker Richard Jones, who will shortly complete his 100th copy of the Linarol viol, to recreate two sets of viols: a “high” consort of treble, two tenors and a bass, and a “low” consort, pitched a fourth lower, comprising a tenor, two basses and a “great” bass.