The Trail & District Arts Council presents Juno award-winners The Fretless with Madeleine Roger at The Bailey Theatre on Tuesday, January 27 at 7:30 pm as part of the Performing Arts Trail series.

The Fretless is a Canadian string group reimagining folk music for today. With deep traditional roots and a modern edge, they blend old-school sounds with fresh energy—making traditional music feel new, exciting, and totally relevant.

This quartet pushes the boundaries of what a string quartet can do. With a distinctly rich and multi-layered sound, they transform fiddle tunes and folk melodies into intricate, beautiful, high-energy arrangements.

The Fretless is Trent Freeman (Fiddle/Viola), Karrnnel Sawitsky (Fiddle/Viola), Ben Plotnick (Fiddle/Viola), and Eric Wright (Cello).
Awards:
“Waterbound” in 2012: Winner of Instrumental Album of the Year at the Western Canadian Music Awards (WCMA) and Instrumental Group of the Year and Ensemble of the Year at the Canadian Folk Music Awards (CFMA).
“The Fretless” in 2014: Winner of Instrumental Album of the Year (WCMA) and Ensemble of the Year (CFMA).
“Live from the Art Farm” in 2019: Winner of Instrumental Album of the Year (CFMA).
“Bird’s Nest” In 2017: Winner of the JUNO award for Instrumental Album of The Year.

The Fretless are just as likely to perform at a concert hall (most recently, halls such as the Royal Glasgow Concert Hall in Scotland, The Colon Philharmonie in Germany, or the National Arts Centre in Ottawa) as a folk festival (such as Vancouver Island Folk Fest, Winnipeg Folk Fest, Memoirs et Racines). They can be found playing a pub one day and a chamber music festival the next.

The band is taking their innovative and vibrant version of a string quartet to countless corners of the musical world, bringing audiences on a journey that transcends genre, defies stereotypes, and can only be described as The Fretless.

“It isn’t often that you come across instrumental music so beautiful that each track feels like brush strokes in a piece of artwork.” – Ben Ray, Cherwell

Joining them on this tour for a night of passionately expressive music is incredible singer-songwriter Madeleine Roger, whose lyrical prowess and breathtaking melodies linger long after they are sung. Her regular collaborations with The Fretless include live performances and recordings as a vocalist and co-writer.
Madeleine has toured extensively across Canada, Europe, USA, and the UK sharing her music live at the Winnipeg Folk Festival, Shetland Island Folk Festival, Vancouver Island Music Festival, Stan Rogers Folk Festival, Summerfolk Festival of Arts and Crafts, among others. She has been nominated for awards as English Songwriter of the Year (2020 Canadian Folk Music Awards) and Producer of the Year 2019 Western Canadian Music Awards).

Single tickets are $30. Under 30 years is $15. Common Access Card is $15.

All tickets available online at trail-arts.com, by phone at 250-368-9669, and in person at the Bailey Box Office at 1501 Cedar Ave., Trail.

This performance is made possible thanks to our sponsors Century 21 (Kootenay Homes Ltd.,), Pharmasave Trail, TECK Trail Operations and the support of our funders the BC Arts Council, BC Live Performance Network, and the Government of Canada. We also gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the Province of British Columbia.