Tim Van Eyken is the winner of the Radio 2 Young Tradition Award, but as per usual that fact disguises a bigger story. Unusually he started out as the whistle player for a dance troop, The Beetlecrushers. They bought him his first melodeon, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Within two years he had already won the Fylde Folk Festival Young Performers Competition. The next year saw him finishing first reserve in the Young Tradition Award.

That was back in '94. The following year saw him contributing to the Mrs Casey Music Evolving Tradition project. Playing alongside Kerensa Wragg he contributed a track to the CD of the project.

Touring followed including appearances at both the Barbican and the South Bank Centre. His talent has also taken him further abroad with gigs throughout Europe and Scandinavia.
An ability to absorb influences from other cultures has added to the strength and depth of Tim's act. If you listen, you can hear influences from his European tours as well as a French Canadian sound.

Versatility can be counted as another strength. Tim is appearing at Cambridge with his Quartet, but he seems equally at home solo, paired up or as part of larger groups. It says a lot that Tim is able to slip in and out of being the lead performer to being a man amongst equals in a simple step.

Folk is in the fortunate position of giving it's youngsters their heads as well as their hearts. The reward is young bands and artists that are capable of turning in first class Performances on festival stages when most musicians are still trying to get their first pub gig.