The Tin Violin

The life of the violinist and composer Joseph Emidy is one of the most extraordinary of modern times. Born in Guinea, West Africa in 1775, at the height of European colonialism, Emidy was first captured as a slave by the Portuguese, then kidnapped by the British Navy, serving as a fiddler on The Indefatigable during the French wars. Landing at Falmouth, Cornwall and being presented with a magical tin violin made by an illiterate miner, Emidy became a musical genius of the early nineteenth century.

Boy Josh finds himself embarking on a thrilling journey through worlds familiar and unknown. His epic adventure demands a resistance against the most savage of oppression before he finds freedom and love in music and song. On the way he meets mad sailors, gabbling Cornish fools, crazy fishermen and a woman who softly plays the strings of his heart.