Vancouver Folk Music Festival

July 15 to 17, 2022

Beledrone

Beledrone is an eclectic ensemble of Scottish highland bagpipes, Balinese processional gamelan beleganjur, solo voices (Ukrainian bilij holos or ‘pure voice’), chorus, and viola forged by a Western classical ‘new music’ sensibility into a seamless blend of musical traditions. 

The ensemble was formed in 2011 by Michael O’Neill in collaboration with I Wayan Sudirana, a Balinese musician and instructor of gamelan at UBC (gamelan refers to the gongs and metallaphone-based orchestras of Java and Bali). As a long-time bagpipe player, O’Neill noticed the similar traditional role played by Balinese processional gamelan beleganjur and Scottish highland bagpipes in cremation/funeral ceremonies and other rituals. Combining these with Ukrainian-style singing and Western classical strings, Beledrone has become known for its “earthy and ethereal sounds” (Music on Main) and virtuosic performances.

Saturday Concert: 12pm East Stage