About

Simon is a highly respected virtuoso English concertina player and a past winner of the BBC Radio 2 Young Traditional Musician Award. He is an accomplished composer, having created music for a variety of projects, and has performed with many artists throughout his career. He is also the founder of Hands Up for Trad, which promotes Scottish music and culture through various projects, including the BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician Award and the Scots Trad Music Awards.

Simon’s virtuosity and love for Scottish music are evident in his performances, and his contributions to the Scottish music scene have helped to make it more visible and prominent in the media. His collaborations with pianist Dave Milligan have resulted in three albums, including their latest album Portraits, which features music they wrote over lockdown for different people. Simon’s passion for Scottish music and culture is infectious, and his music will continue to inspire and delight audiences around the world.

Simon Thoumire is an English Concertina player who has been performing since the age of 12. He learned the concertina from Alistair Anderson’s Concertina Workshop tutor and LP, and was lucky to get his first performance experience at Chrissie Leatham’s Edinburgh Accordion Club. He joined Edinburgh band Seannachie when he was 17 and they made an album called Take Note.

In 1988, Simon entered the BBC Radio 2 Young Traditional Musician Award and met musicians Ian Carr, Andy Cutting, and Kathryn Tickell. He entered again the next year and won. From that, he made an album called Hootz! with Ian Carr and they traveled to Canada to play festivals in 1990.

Simon has performed with many artists, including guitarist Ian Carr, Seannachie, Dave Milligan, John McCusker, Jim Sutherland and his own group Simon Thoumire Three. He has composed music for a variety of projects, including the Scottish Requiem and the Celtic Connections Suite. He appeared on many TV programmes including Aly Bain’s Shetland Sessions and the Transatlantic Sessions. He has performed all over the world.

Simon has been a prolific contributor to the Scottish music scene and is the founder of Hands Up for Trad, a project which includes the BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician Award and the Scots Trad Music Awards. His music touches the heart and makes people smile, and he is proud to see Scottish bands performing to thousands of people across the world.

If you would like to support Simon’s work you can support him on Patreon www.patreon.com/simonthoumire or buy him a coffee www.buymeacoffee.com/simonthoumire