Tom McConville was born in Newcastle-upon-Tyne to an Irish father and a Scottish mother, and it is perhaps this rich musical heritage which gives him such an intuitive understanding of the music which he sings and plays. He has played the fiddle for most of his life, and turned professional in 1971. He is a great musician with a lovely flowing style, beautiful tone and faultless technique and is regarded by many as one of the finest fiddle players in the British Isles. He's also a very fine singer, having a powerful yet mellow voice. His musical associations over the years have included Bob Fox, Kieran Halpin (with whom he gained great critical acclaim), Magna Carta, his own band Dab Hand, Alistair Anderson's Syncopace, a trio with Steve Tilston and Maggie Boyle, and a long-standing working relationship with guitarist Chris Newman.

Pauline Cato is one of the greatest Northumbrian pipers. Her style is traditional, but she is also well known for expanding the repertoire of the pipes and is often in demand for new projects. These have included 'The Shipley Set' with Alistair Anderson (which led to her being appointed Piper to the Mayor of Gateshead), a tour of the northeast performing a Czech/Northumbrian suite and the Opera 'Cullercoates Tommy' with the Northern Sinfonia Orchestra. Pauline's playing has been described as 'beautiful', 'stunning', 'breath-taking' and even 'super-human!'. Following the success of her debut album 'The Wansbeck Piper', Pauline became a full-time musician in 1993 and has performed extensively as a soloist throughout the UK and Europe. In 1994 she released her second album 'Changing Tides', which also featured Tom McConville. This led to an invitation to perform together at the prestigious Shetland Folk Festival and was to be the start of an exciting and powerful partnership.

Tom's rich double-stopping complements and combines effortlessly with Pauline's accurate, staccato, traditional style. They specialise in tight unison playing and beautifully arranged harmony playing, with the harmonies swapping between instruments. Much of their material comes from their native north-east, but audiences should not be surprised to hear French-Canadian or Scandinavian tunes alongside Scottish, Irish and American tunes and even some of their own compositions. Tom and Pauline's interpretation of both traditional and contemporary songs forms an important part of their performance. Tom and Pauline are not only virtuoso musicians but are rapidly increasing their reputation as one of Britain's premier duos.

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