ONE of Dorset’s best loved folk acts, Ninebarrow, will be doubling in size for a special, one-off quartet concert in North Dorset.

In a few short years, Jon Whitley and Jay LaBouchardiere, have carved themselves a distinctive niche on the folk roots scene for their “outstanding harmonies, delicate instrumentation and engaging songs”.

Since giving up full-time careers in medicine and teaching back in 2017, they’ve been nominated for awards by the BBC and toured all over the UK.

Most recently, the duo saw their latest album, The Waters and the Wild, pick up a string of nominations in the end of year awards season.

Having already reached number two in the Amazon.co.uk folk chart earlier in the year, the five-star record was also crowned Best Album by the Nova FM Folk Show.

This year for the first time on January 11 at The Exchange in Sturminster Newton, the pair will be joined by cellist and long-term collaborator, Lee MacKenzie and also John Parker on double bass.

A band spokesman said: “With brand new songs and stunningly realised arrangements of some old favourites, this Ninebarrow Quartet concert promises to be something rather special.”

Friday night’s concert starts at 7.30pm (with doors at 7pm) and tickets are £14 which are available from ninebarrow.co.uk/quartet

Named after Nine Barrow Down in the Purbeck hills, their first release, While the Blackthorn Burns, was voted FATEA Magazine’s Best Debut Album of 2014.

The pair were also nominated for (Best Emerging Act) at the 2017 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards.