Can you imagine travelling to a Highland dancing competition in Ireland in 1862 and taking first prize in a sword-dance competition while accompanying yourself on a fiddle - and knocking out an established champion in the process? That was just one exploit of legendary fiddler and dancer James Scott Skinner. Known as the Strathspey King, he was a kingpin of Scottish traditional music both before and after his death in 1927 . Now he has a website, The Music of James Scott Skinner, created by the University of Aberdeen. It is packed with biographical information - music, letters, photographs and articles and documents - and even has music and video clips of dances as he taught them.
www.abdn.ac.ukscottskinner