Thomas Alexander Erskine

Born in 1732 at the family castle in the East Neuk of Fife, as a teenager the nobleman came to be known in Pittenweem as ‘fiddler Tam’. According to a contemporary account, however, he could ‘scarcely tune his fiddle’ until he ‘shut himself up at Mannheim with the elder Stamitz, and studied composition and practised the violin with serious application’. Mannheim was one of the leading centre of music excellence at that time, It attracted some of the leading composers of the second half of the eighteenth century – including Mozart.

On his return in 1756, the Earl therefore brought to the Edinburgh Musical Society professional experience from the front rank of the European musical scene.

Many of his compositions have been lost. Ten symphonies, six trio sonatas and a collection of minuets make up the bulk of what remains. Its quality is variable, but much of it is very attractive.

Regional tags: Fife; Edinburgh & The Lothians