The Mediaeval Baebes are a crossover vocal ensemble whose unique style features a deft mixture of medieval music, multi-language texts, modern arrangements, and both ancient and modern instrumentation. Their skillful and attractive arrangements, usually fashioned by member Katharine Blake, often have a dark, somber character while exhibiting contemporary rhythmic and sound features. Consisting of about six to twelve singers, Mediaeval Baebes are typically attired in long, sometimes provocative gowns or gothic-inspired costumes, and may wear, depending on the concert's theme, vampiric teeth, flowered headwear, or other exotic accoutrements. Song texts typically deal with such subjects as death, drunkenness, unrequited love, and religious and supernatural subjects. The ensemble's members often play an instrument during performance. Katharine Blake, Bev Lee Harling, and Jo Burke, for example, are violinists; Emily Ovenden and Blake play the recorder; and other members, Esther Dee, Clare Edmondson, and Tanya Jackson, play various instruments. Over the years the group has made use of accompanists like Frank Moon (oud, cittern, etc.) and Rebecca Dutton (medieval fiddle, psaltery, etc.). The range of languages in which the Mediaeval Baebes sing is vast and includes Latin, French, German, Russian, Spanish, Italian, Swedish, Irish Gaelic, English, various older forms of English, and such archaic languages as Cornish and Welsh. They have regularly toured the U.K., Europe, Canada, and the U.S., and have recorded for such labels as Nettwerk Records, Caroline, and Virgin Records. The Mediaeval Baebes were formed in London in 1996. Founding members included Katharine Blake, who also serves as the ensemble's musical director, and Dorothy Carter, who played several medieval stringed instruments like the hurdy-gurdy and hammered dulcimer. Some of the earliest members were drawn from Blake's musical group the Miranda Sex Garden, and included Teresa Casella. After early concert success, the Mediaeval Baebes were invited onto Thames Television in 1997 to sing the 14th century hymn Gaudete. Their first album, Salva Nos, was issued on Virgin Records the following year and its chart-topping success led to more presitigious concert venues and a string of popular recordings, including Undrentide, issued in 2000 on Nettwerk Records. Other notable early successes included acclaimed performances at the November 2002 Festival of Immortality in Vancouver, Canada. In 2003 Dorothy Carter died, aged 68. Her passing was only one of many changes in the group's personnel: that same year Emily Ovenden joined and Melanie Garside (2005), also known as Maple Bee, Claire Rabbitt (2005), and Melpomeni Kermanidou (2006), were later additions, the latter three leaving after several years' service. Meanwhile the Mediaeval Baebes were making headway on other fronts: they sang on the soundtrack to the 2005 BBC production of The Virgin Queen, which received the Ivor Novello award for best television soundtrack in 2007. Their 2008 U.S. tour included acclaimed performances at the Maryland Renaissance Festival in October. Their recordings continued to have great success, as evidenced by their popular 2009 CD, Illumination, on Universal. The Mediaeval Baebes' 2011 concert schedule included acclaimed tours of the U.S. (East Coast) in September and U.K. (Bournemouth, Cornwall, etc.) in December.