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Artist
Tom Clough
12+ albums
folkinstrumentalbagpipesnorthumbriannorthumbrian smallpipes
about
Tom Clough (1881–1964), known as 'The Prince of Pipers', was an English player of the Northumbrian pipes, or Northumbrian smallpipes. Clough was also a pipemaker, and the pipes he made with Fred Picknell include several important innovations, and have a distinctive tone. He had studied the instrument with the noted piper Thomas Todd, and from his own father Henry Clough. His three surviving recordings, among the earliest recordings made of the instrument, and his considerable body of music manuscripts, including his own compositions, give considerable insight into the traditional playing technique and style of the instrument. This is particularly so because at least four previous generations of the family had been pipers, as was his son 'Young Tom' (1912-1987) - they thus form a continuous link between earliest players of the modern instrument, and contemporary players. In contrast to the widely accepted notion of traditional folk music as an essentially rural activity, he and his family lived in the mining community of Newsham in south-east Northumberland, and were miners themselves. At the end of his life, 'Young Tom' recalled piping sessions at the 'Willow Tree' in Newsham, with his father Tom, grandfather Henry Clough, and Richard Mowat all playing - Henry's and Richard Mowat's playing would get more furious and inaccurate as the evening progressed; Tom was teetotal. Young Tom had the job of carrying his grandfather's pipes afterwards. User-contributed text is available
top songs
albums
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The Northumbrian Small Pipes
Excavated Shellac: An Alternate History of the World's Music
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Holey Ha'penny - Classic Recordings of Traditional Music from the North-East of England
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Northumbrian Small Pipes
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The Ace and Deuce of Pipering 1906 - 1947
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The Ace & Deuce of Pipering - 1906-1947
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The Ace & Deuce of Pipering 1906-1947: A World Bagpipe Anthology
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Excavated Shellac: An Alternate History of the World's Music (1907-1967)
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Excavated Shellac
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The Ace & Deuce of Pipering: Bagpipes From Europe, India & Africa 1906-1947
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Northumbrian Smallpipes
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NSP: Northumbrian Small Pipes