James Boyle

I am James, often known as Jim. I have been a fiddle player since the age of six, when I begun having classical violin lessons through school in Devon, where i was born and bought up in the beautiful countryside along the north coast. At the same time, I joined a morris side, which is partly what I have to blame for getting me started in folk. The rest of the blame falls to my parents! :) I continued studying classical music alongside playing folk and traditional music, until I reached ABRSM grade seven, by which time I had decided that classical music was really not where my heart was in music, so finished there, and continued to work more and more on folk and traditional music. Since september 2006 I have been studying on the Folk and Traditional Music degree at the University of Newcastle upon-Tyne. I have also been known to play a bit of guitar, and mandolin here and there, and study melodeon as my second instument on the degree. I have been a semi-finalist in the BBC Young Folk Award on two occasions with friend and fiddle player/guitarist Kevin Lees, who is a member of the current winners "Last Orders". I continue to play in various duo's and other combinations with various instruments, and am currently working with several other musicians towards the formation of a ceilidh band.