An internationally acclaimed multi-instrumentalist, Tim Rayborn has been active in the fields of world and early music for nearly 20 years. He plays dozens of musical instruments from medieval Europe, the Middle East, the Balkans, and Central Asia, including: lutes, plucked strings, flutes,
and percussion, as well as being a singer.

Tim lived in the UK for seven years, studying for his M.A. and Ph.D. in medieval studies at the University of Leeds. He concurrently worked as a musician, performing and recording.

He has toured the U.S. and Europe extensively (from Ireland to Turkey), performing with the London-based medieval group Tintagel, and his own group, Ensemble Florata (including concerts at the York and Beverley Early Music Festivals, Alden Biesen Castle in Belgium, Bunyola in Majorca, and the Spitalfields Festival in London). He has given a number of performances for BBC (in the UK and Jersey), appeared on Belgian classical radio in a live concert broadcast, toured in Canada and Australia, and worked with folk musicians in Marrakech and Istanbul. He has also taught at the San Francisco Early Music Society Medieval/Renaissance summer workshop.

In addition to his solo projects, he currently co-directs Cançonièr with
recorder virtuoso Annette Bauer, performs with Celtic harpist and storyteller Patrick Ball
and Goth/Celtic rock band Pandemonaeon, collaborates with award-winning
Swedish folk musicians Dråm, and works regularly with Shira Kammen.

He has recorded to date on more than 30 CDs for a number of labels, including Gaudeamus,
Wild Boar, Magnatune, Diaphonica, Octofoil, Osmosys, EMP, Nimbus, and Harmonia Mundi.

Recently, he has performed at the Giornate Medioevale in Poggio, Italy,
the Berkeley Early Music Festival fringe, the Renaissance and Baroque Society of Pittsburgh,
and the MusicSources concert series. Future engagements include the MusicSources
concert series, and the Indianapolis Early Music Festival.

Tim has collaborated, performed, and recorded with
numerous music groups and performers.

Early Music collaborations include:

Shira Kammen, Annette Bauer, Phoebe Jevtovic, Rita Lilly, Karen Clark, Susan Rode Morris,
Anne Azema, Tom Zajac, Cheryl Ann Fulton, Sinfonye, Tintagel, Ensemble Florata, Ensemble Alcatraz, Misericordia, Clara Sanabras, Kit Higginson, Peter Maund, and Gilbert Martinez.

World, folk, and contemporary collaborations include:

Kitka (Balkan women's vocal group), Ross Daly (lyra), Lily Storm (voice), Diana Rowan (harp), Solace (Middle Eastern fusion), Maduro (Industrial electronica), Ya Elah (spiritual vocal music), Kate St. Pierre (vocalist with Le Rève in Las Vegas), Ruben Van Rompaey (Turkish percussion), Karim Nagi (Arabic percussion), Shuvani (Romany music and dance), Javad Butah (tabla), David McClean (flamenco guitar), Dann Torres (multi-instrumentalist), Dave Hall (percussion),
Stellamara (world fusion), Mark Deutsch (Bazantar), John Waller (percussion), Celtarabia (Arabic/Celtic fusion), Alex De Grassi (Grammy-nominated guitarist), Distant Oaks (Celtic),
Lisa Rafel (voice), Gary Malkin (Emmy award-winning composer and pianist),
Stephen Kent (digeridoo), and John Sponsler (composer for Warner Brothers’ film trailers).

He has written academic articles on crusade songs, medieval Spain, and religious chant
(the latter for Gregorian Chant: Songs of the Spirit, the best-selling KQED book
to accompany the PBS television program in 1996).

He is currently working on a number of new recordings.

Tim hates having to update his biography every couple of months, but promises to do it anyway.

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