Colin Ross (pipemaker)

Colin Ross is an English folk musician, playing fiddle and Northumbrian smallpipes, and a noted maker of Northumbrian smallpipes, Border pipes and Scottish smallpipes, and one of the inventors of the modern Scottish smallpipes. Ross is also a fiddler, and played both Northumbrian smallpipes and fiddle in the English folk music band the High Level Ranters (formed 1964). This specialised in the music of Northumberland and the Scottish Borders. They played a major role in the revival of Northumbrian music from the 1960s. In 1977, each of the Ranters was given the chance to produce a solo album. Rather than do this alone, Ross collaborated with various other musicians to produce Cut and Dry Dolly, an album of early Northumbrian music, simple dance tunes from the late 18th century William Vickers manuscript together with long variation sets, particularly from the Peacock tunebook from the beginning of the 19th century. This was very influential in reviving interest in this early strand of Northumbrian music.

He was born 1934, in Donkin Terace, North Shields, and was brought up there by his parents John Ross and Agnes Charlton, learning to play the violin as a teenager. He took a sculpture degree at Kings College Durham (now Newcastle University) from 1952–56. At this time he met the Kingsmen Rapper side (becoming their musician after trying the dance) as well as the Northumbrian pipers Forster Charlton and Colin Caisley, falling in love with the Northumbrian smallpipes.

In 1958 he was a founder member of the Bridge Folk Club, Newcastle, originally called Newcastle Folksong and Ballad, and met his future wife there, the singer Ray Fisher. In the same year he got his first set of pipes from Willie Hamilton in Glasgow via Forster Charlton. He made his first set of pipes in 1961 while he was a lecturer at Newcastle Polytechnic (now Northumbria University), copying his own set. He won several pipemaking competitions through the 1960s, and was elected vice-chairman of the Northumbrian Pipers' Society in 1964.

...
Wikipedia