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Eric Reiswig

Bagpipery, cittern, mandolin, dulcimer, recorders, whistles, flute, hurdy-gurdy, vocals, percussion

Eric grew up in Montreal, a city rich in musical culture, but it wasn't until his late teens that he developed any interest in playing.  He started with electric guitar, but eventually hung it up to pursue Irish and English folk music on the tin whistle and recorder.  From there it was natural to discover the Irish uilleann pipes, and he has since decided to make it his life's work to play as much music on as many instruments as possible.

Since moving to Victoria in 1996, Eric has been active in traditional music locally, playing uilleann pipes, flute and whistles with Sheila Ryan, Daniel Lapp, Calvin Cairns, Oliver Swain, Paul O'Brien, and Quinn & Qristina Bachand (among others.)  His musical heart has belonged to Banquo since our founding in 1998, which allows him to explore his more eclectic interests in the varied world of folk music and instruments.

Eric's fascination with obscure folk instruments, especially bagpipes, soon led him to start building his own.  When not playing, he can be found building an ever-increasing variety of instruments in his workshop.

Lael Whitehead

Vocals, guitar, whistles, recorders, percussion

Lael Whitehead is a singer, composer and multi-instrumentalist who divides her time between Victoria and a sheep farm on Mayne Island.

As a child, Lael fell in love with Folk and early music and has been involved in Celtic and Old time ensembles, as well as many choirs and chamber choirs (including the renowned Elektra Women's Choir in Vancouver). She is a member of the Mayne Island-based Celtic/fusion trio, Jaiya, which is currently at work on their third recording.

Banquo is her first Early Music ensemble, and she is thrilled to be playing and performing this repertoire after decades of being an Early Music fan.

Lael has also been an active member of the Mayne Island Little Theatre company for the past eight years. She enjoys incorporating theatrical elements into her musical performances.

Jude Pelley

Vocals, mandolin, mandola, guitar, dulcimer, whistle

Born in Carbonear, Newfoundland, in 1975, and raised on the South Shore of Nova Scotia, folksinger and fretted string player Jude Pelley has had a colourful career in roots, acoustic and traditional music that spans fifteen years and a surprisingly eclectic collection of musical groups. From his early days as an electric guitarist with Celtic fusion group Celtika, through five years of touring and two East Coast Music Awards with bluegrass group Exit 13, through his work as instrumentalist and producer with critically acclaimed singer-songwriter Amelia Curran, and two live records with early music consort Ensemble a Part, his interest in acoustic music has taken him many places and opened many doors for him.

Currently based in Victoria, British Columbia, he runs Alone Stone Productions, a small-scale recording studio and production company, and participates in as many of the local acoustic music sessions as he can, in Canada's garden city.

Percussion, surpeti, vocals

You've heard of "found music" - Amy is a "found musician." She was sure she had no musical ability all those years living in Montreal, but after moving to Victoria, Banquo leader Eric convinced her to have a go at the drum, and... well, who knew! With no formal training comes no sense of fear. Her approach to music is essentially "why not!" so don't be surprised to find her playing African hand drum and Indian drone box at the same time.

Banquo's cultural blending and synthesis is what Amy loves most about the ensemble, as she is also involved in other creative cultural explorations including writing, visual art and the art of travel. Her favourite places outside of Canada to date include Nepal, India, Portugal, Russia and the Faroe Islands. Amy has worked as a research assistant at a Holocaust documentation archive, a college literature teacher and freelance researcher and editor. She has published travel articles (including an interview with the singer of a Faroese Viking heavy metal band), research on medieval monasticism, and book reviews nationally and internationally. Amy's work, travel and now musical experience has produced a strong belief in the power of the arts to change people's lives for the better. She is proud to live in Esquimalt, BC, and proud to be part of Banquo.