Ugly Pug was founded in 2014 with the single objective of commissioning and performing new music. While the trio would have been a fairly standard formation from 400 years ago, the recorder (Juho Myllylä), viola da gamba (Miron Andres) and harpsichord (Wesley Shen) are in this contemporary music context, an exception to the norm.

By treating their instruments completely detached from their past and ‘standard’ repertoire, the trio and the composers they work with have freedom to explore new sounds and possibilities not found in traditional chamber music formations of our time. The ensemble has performed at festivals in The Netherlands and Finland and has been mentored by the top specialists in the field, such as recorder player Jorge Isaac and harpsichordist Goska Isphording. They have also expanded their ensemble in various collaborations with harpsichordists André Lourenço and Ere Lievonen, violinist Kirsti Apajalahti, visual artist Jean-Marie Caddeo, tap dance artist Marije Nie and the Trash Panda Collective. 

The name of the ensemble often elicits strong reactions: “What do you mean by ‘Ugly Pug’? Pugs are not ugly!” The group is named after a very special pug, Sabba, and the endless and still unresolved debates over his supposed ugliness or attractiveness. Ugly Pug reflects this very problem of aesthetic judgement and the contradictions in the concepts of beauty versus ugliness. The dichotomy in Ugly Pug’s fusion of divergent instruments and style, allows us to break away from all traditional expectations and standards of beauty to explore something different.

Ugly Pug is based in Amsterdam. Their debut album Crossroads is released on Olive Music/Etcetera Records in 2021.