Barnaby and Winter uncover multiple motives when the winner of a fought-after music award is found strangled with a violin string, moments before a performance. The possible motives include rivalry over the prize, disagreements about the music festival business, and a missing Stradivarius violin. Guest star James Fleet (The Vicar of Dibley).

The town of Causton's detective chief investigator and his detective sergeant investigate the scandals and deadly deeds that lurk just beneath the well-manicured surface of the county of Midsomer. The series is bolstered by a rotating cast of investigators and many special celebrity appearances.