The Mezzotint

Spiro are an engaging, experimental acoustic band from Bristol who defy categorisation. They play violin, mandolin, accordion, guitar and cello, make use of traditional English melodies in many of their intricate compositions, but are definitely not a conventional folk band. The traditional influences are "enmeshed" (one of their favourite words) into an elaborate, atmospheric or quietly stirring rhythmic style that makes use of the repeated phrases and patterns of systems music – though they never stay on one riff for long. There is no improvisation and no solo work; each piece has been meticulously worked out in advance, with melodies and riffs juggled between the different instruments. On tracks such as the opening Yellow Noise, it sounds as if there are more than four musicians at work, but the album was recorded live, with no overdubs. Spiro are that rarity: true English originals.

These stories are designed to engender a chill in the listener which is not just due to the season. Stephen Critchlow, a characterful actor, is a collector of ghost stories and relishes putting across those slightly odd moments when things don't just seem to follow the normal process. Charles Dickens was chilling enough in his novels - one only has to remember the entry of Magwitch in Great Expectations! - but as a writer set deeply in the Victorian era and unashamedly a lover of the melodramatic, it comes as no surprise that one of the greatest classics of the genre was The Signalman. As a medieval scholar of a later period (1862-1936) M. R. James had a very different temperament but produced a string of classic ghost stories, of which The Mezzotint is one of the best known.

A fine collection of 18th century historical prints, as well as 19th century American paintings. Much of the collection was later auctioned. Exceptional annotation of each work included in the exhibition, and new scholarly information is presented relative to the prints…