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| PERFORMER | Jim Henson |
| DEBUT | 1983 |
| DESIGN | Michael K. Frith designer |
| Jane Gootnick builder | |
Cantus the Minstrel is a Fraggle who made his first appearance on Fraggle Rock in the first season episode "The Minstrels."
An enigmatic bard, Cantus is the leader of a group of traveling musicians known as The Minstrels. He plays a magic pipe, capable of producing songs when other Fraggles simply blow into it (only if a Fraggle is in touch with their inner "song"). His pipe playing is often the calling card that signals his arrival, which only comes on magical occasions. He has performed such songs as "Let Me Be Your Song" and "Our Melody."
His life revolves around music: whenever he plays, the flowers around him go into full bloom. Not only does he play for Fraggles, but he knows the music of the Doozers and Gorgs just as well. He has a very mysterious way of saying things, some sounding more like riddles than wisdom. He has a zen-like temperament that rarely changes even in tense situations; a self-described "implacable calm," which he mentions just before briefly losing his temper in "The Minstrels." But like all Fraggles, he does still possess a silly side which occasionally surfaces (notably in the episode "The Honk of Honks"). The appearance of he and the other minstrels is considered an honored event by the other Fraggles and worthy of celebration.
He appeared in five episodes of Fraggle Rock, sometimes by himself, and sometimes with the other minstrels. He is one of only two recurring characters performed by Jim Henson on the series; the other of which is Convincing John. Henson briefly performs Cantus in Down at Fraggle Rock: Behind the Scenes where he lists him as one of his favorite Fraggle Rock characters. Cantus's name is from the Latin word for "song."
The 2022 reboot series Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock features a similar character named Jamdolin, who leads a group of wandering rock musicians called the Troubadours.
