Peter Knight has spent much of his musical life finding interesting ways not to do quite what was expected of him. A scholarship took him to the Royal Academy of Music at just thirteen, with a classical career apparently beckoning, but traditional music proved rather more tempting.

In 1970 he joined Steeleye Span, becoming an integral part of the band’s classic sound and helping to shape a form of British folk rock whose influence is still very much with us. Since leaving Steeleye in 2013, his work with Gigspanner has taken him somewhere less easily labelled — drawing together traditional music, improvisation and influences from far beyond the folk world.

At the heart of Gigspanner is the trio of Knight, guitarist Roger Flack and percussionist Sacha Trochet. Flack brings influences from blues, rock and funk to his wonderfully fluid guitar playing, while Trochet’s subtle, inventive percussion gives the music much of its pulse and space. Together they have developed an almost instinctive musical understanding, three exceptional players listening as closely to each other as they play. The result is music that can feel ancient and entirely new at the same time: atmospheric, adventurous and never particularly interested in staying within the lines.

As Knight’s friend, the late Sir Terry Pratchett, rather wonderfully put it:

“Peter Knight can spin the world on his bow.”