Ian Anderson

Ian, a policeman in Jedburgh, studied the guitar and fiddle alongside Jimmy Nagle, both at Jedburgh Academy and under Tommy Hughes' guidance. Over the years he has added banjo and bouzouki to his array of instruments.

Ian was a founder member of the folk group Fiddler's Leap in 1986.

Apropos of regional styles, Ian tells a revealing story of endeavouring to hide the band fiddles under the table at a pub session during Fiddler's Leap's first trip to the Orkneys in 1993. The lads began to panic when they recognised that their style (and much of their repertoire) was radically different from the surrounding players. When they did eventually play it was to great applause at their fresh Borders sound. Their concerts at the Orkney Folk Festival went down very well indeed.