Get ready t
o stomp your feet\, laugh\, cry\, and hear sounds you’ve never heard befor
e with this electrifying and genre-defying chamber-folk band. Wielding a s
ound that could turn classical 
music scholars
to stone\, these four folk innovators are reimagining the Western string q
uartet. Medusa Quartet cross-pollinates traditional music from around the
world with original tunes\, classical pieces\, engaging stories\, and thei
r one-of-a-kind stringed instruments to create a “must-see live show!” (Sa
m Boer\, Exclaim!).
Medusa Quartet is truly unique in Canada\, dis tinguished by its rare and compelling combination of instruments. Marta So łek plays the Bilgoray Suka and the Płock Fidel from Poland\, instruments that were made completely extinct and reconstructed in 1980 based on paint ings from the 19th century. There are less than 50 people in the whole wor ld that know how to play these instruments. Saskia Tomkins plays the Nycke lharpa from Sweden\, a medieval-age fiddle that almost died out in the 20t h century\, but was resurrected by Erik Sahlström in the 1960’s. There is no other group in the country\, and likely the world\, that blends the sou nds of these particular instruments together.
\nBy inviting back voi
ces previously regarded as too ugly for “polite society\,” Medusa tempts u
s
to redefine what is beautiful. One of the m
ost misunderstood figures in ancient mythology\, Medusa was wrongfully pun
ished and cast out for being the victim of a violent act\, but is remember
ed solely for her frightful ugliness and lithifying gaze. As a band made u
p of female\, 2SLGBTQ\, BIPOC\, immigrant\, and neurodiverse artists\, the
y resonate with Medusa’s story and hope to amplify the voices of these com
munities.
With their debut EP\, nominated for a 2024 Canadian Folk Music Award\, Medusa harnesses the sounds of Middle Eastern\, Scandinavia n\, Celtic\, Appalachian\, Classical and Eastern European music\, as well as original compositions\, to create something previously unheard. With th is debut release\, they connect audiences across dividing lines of culture and identity to reveal the common threads beneath. In the last several ye ars they have toured across Canada\, the United States and the United King dom\, including shows at Roy Thomson Hall\, Calgary Folk Festival\, Hugh’s Room Live\, Calliope House\, the Rogue Folk Club\, and many more. Their m usic has been featured numerous times on CBC\, CKUA\, and Polish National Radio\, and their EP was featured as one of Roots Music Canada’s favorite new discoveries of 2023.
\nAs individuals and as a group\, Medusa Qu artet has extensive experience teaching children and adults of all ages. T hey teach individual lessons\, group workshops\, and community events acro ss Canada\, the US and the UK and are in demand as instructors and guest c linicians for festivals\, schools\, fiddle orchestras\, camps\, residencie s\, and events.
\nMedusa’s first full-length album\, “Weaving Gold i n Broken Places\,” will be released in February 2026 and they will be emba rking on a release tour of Canada\, the US\, and Europe.
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Individual Biographies
\nMarta Sołek (she/her) is a multi-instrumentalist from Poland. She was essent ial in the creation of a folk music revival program at the Krakow Academy of Music\, which allowed her to be the first musician in the world to hold a master’s degree in the Suka from Bilgoray and Płock fiddle\, alongside classical cello. She was a part of the restoration of these unique traditi onal Polish instruments from the 17th century\, and flew to Pakistan to st udy with sarangi masters in order to revive a lost fingernail technique ne eded to play these instruments.
\nMarta has performed all over the w orld with classical orchestras\, jazz\, pop\, rock and world music bands. She has recorded 14 CD’s in total\, as well as music for TV shows\, games\ , and theater. She is the winner of several awards and grants including a grant from the Ministry of Culture of Poland\, the Fryderyk (the Polish JU NO Award) for the best debut jazz album of the year (2015)\, and the best jazz album of the year with Nikola Kolodziejczyk (2016). She has also won several awards at “Nowa Tradycja” and ”Mikolajki Folkowe”\, Polish Folk Fe stivals.
\nShe was part of the band Same Suki and founded the knee-f iddle duo InFidelis\, whose Projekt Kolberg CD was awarded a full 5 stars in Songlines Magazine. She currently performs and tours wi th Labyrinth Ensemble\, Polky\, Moskitto Bar\, KUNE Global Orchestra\, and Meesha Shafi. She was the winner of the Orillia & District Art Council Em erging Artist Award in 2020 and received 4 Canadian Folk Music awards nomi nations for Polky and Medusa Quartet.
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Marta has a degree in teaching\, psychology and pedagogy from the Music Academy in Krakow\, Poland. She has over 15 years of experience teaching in Europe and Canada\ , giving workshops in classical and world music\, and currently teaches ce llo at the Orillia Music Centre\, Ontario. She is committed to raising awa reness about these rare forgotten fiddles.
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Sa skia Tomkins (she/her) is a multi-instrumentalist (Nyckelharp a\, Violin\, Viola)\, a master educator\, fiddle innovator\, and a compose r. Born in the UK\, she is classically trained with a folk background and an Honours B.A. in Music (Jazz). She is an All-Britain Champion Irish Fidd ler\, and in 2022 received an award for services to Irish Music in Canada. She is also a member of multiple JUNO-nominee global roots band the Sulta ns of String.
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Saskia was the official Artist in Residenc e in 2022 with Folk Alliance International\, and i s currently Artist in Residence with British-based organization The Mixed Museum\, which works to preserve and share the soc ial history of racial mixing of Black and ethnic minorities for future gen erations.
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Over the years\, Saskia has worked with many a cclaimed musicians\, including: The Chieftains\, Sultans of String\, Jabbo ur\, Uriah Heep\, Ken Whiteley\, Jimmy Bowskill\, Ron Korb\, David Newland \, Donald Quan\, Lotus Wight\, her husband Steáfán Hannigan and son Oisín Hannigan\, and numerous others.
\nHer theater work includes spending two years working closely with the composer and music director of the Bro adway hit “Come From Away”\, as a special consultant\, to ensure the Celti c roots and traditions were communicated in an authentic way through the s core. She has also worked with The English Shakespeare Company and Michael Bogdanov\, 4th Line Theatre in Ontario\, and Sadler’s Wells Theatre\, Lon don UK.
\nSaskia’s current personal projects include Sultans of Stri ng\, Steáfán & Saskia\, Medusa Quartet\, 2ish\, Cáirdeas\, and Marsala and the Imports. Saskia is principal 2nd violin for Quinte Symphony\, and is in high demand as an educator\, including at El Sistema Peterborough\, Jen ny Whiteley’s Old Time Camp\, Lakefield Music Camp\, and Goderich Celtic C ollege.
\nLea Kirstein (th ey/she) is a multi-instrumentalist ( fiddle / violin\, viola\, and cello)\, educator\, and concert presenter ba sed in Toronto\, Ontario. They grew up in Victoria\, BC\, immersed in many different traditional and contemporary fiddle styles\, studying with Dani el Lapp\, and Oliver Schroer while in the national youth fiddle project\, the Twisted String\, and went on to complete a Bachelor’s degree in Music Education. Collaborations with other musicians have led them on tours acro ss Canada\, the US\, and Europe\, with: Medusa\, iskwē\, Citizen Jane\, Ro aring Timber\, the Folk Arts Quartet\, and Balfolk Toronto.
\nThey h ave recorded with JUNO nominees Teresa Doyle\, Leif Vollebekk\, and with N uala Kennedy\, and currently freelance in the Toronto music scene with new classical\, jazz\, pop\, singer-songwriter\, and folk music groups\, incl uding Medusa Quartet\, Polky\, and Erik Bleich.
\nLea is the current Artistic Director of World on a String\, a Toronto-based Folk Fiddle Coll ective and Music School\, presenting concerts\, jams\, and group classes f or fiddlers of all ages. WOS puts focus on traditional folk tunes from aro und the world\, facilitating workshop connections with experts in their re spective traditions.
\nLea is in demand as a workshop clinician\, ar ranger\, and classroom teacher\, in communities ranging from the Yukon to Halifax and the U.S.\, most notably: Bulkley Valley Youth Fiddlers\, Bad t o the Bow Youth Fiddle Groups\, AlgomaTrad\, World Fiddle Day Toronto\, Va ncouver CeltFest.
\nGeorgia Hathaway (they/them) is a Toronto-based violinist\, fiddler\, songwriter/composer\, and ed ucator with over 30 years of training. They grew up learning both classica l violin from the Suzuki Method\, and Celtic and Canadian fiddle with Oliv er Schroer\, Anne Lederman\, and Emilyn Stam. In 2011\, their passion and interest in global roots music led them to study abroad at the Dhow Countr ies Music Academy in Zanzibar\, Tanzania\, with violinist Mohammed Issa Ma tona. They have continued to study Arabic and Turkish music for the past t en years\, learning from renowned Egyptian violinist Alfred Gamil\, and ha ve toured across Canada with the Canadian Arabic Orchestra\, including per formances with the acclaimed Oud player Naseer Shamma.
\nAlways fasc inated by the connections between musical traditions\, Georgia has also st udied Eastern European\, Balkan\, and Klezmer music since 2015 and has bee n a member of several bands in Toronto\, including the CFMA-award-winning Polky and Queen Kong. Several of their arrangements\, and one of their ori ginal compositions\, “Under my Skin\,” were featured in Polky’s debut albu m Songs from Home.
\nGeorgia has recorded and shared the stage with JUNO nominees and award-winners such as Leif Vollebekk\, S ultans of String\, Susie Vinnick\, and Lemon Bucket Orchestra\, and gueste d with the hit international roots band The Turbans. They have composed fo r and performed in award-winning stage productions at the Toronto Fringe F estival and the Festival de Circo in Mazunte\, Mexico.
\nGeorgia tea ches fiddle and violin from their home studio and has taught at the Suzuki Summer Music Camp\, Strings Across the Sky\, and the Toronto Institute fo r the Enjoyment of Music. They are also a singer-songwriter in the blues a nd folk traditions\, and they hold a Bachelor’s degree in Neuroscience and a Master’s in Psychology.
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Tickets: https://www.universe.c om/events/medusa-tickets-HDT8JR.
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