RON GONNELLA
(Died 17.02.1994)
On Thursday, 17th February 1994, we lost not only a good friend but a gifted musician – who was proud of his Scots / Italian ancestry and who was a fine ambassador for Scotland.
He was well read and well travelled and continually researched the history of Scottish fiddle music and composers. He travelled frequently to Canada and the United States to play, record and adjudicate at a variety of venues.
Ron was gifted intellectually and pursued a wide range of interests which enabled him to meet people from all walks of life.
His eloquence and microgenic speaking voice meant that he received acclaim on radio and television and was an obvious asset in his teaching career at Morrison’s Academy.
He enjoyed a variety of sports and music of many kinds – Scottish, classical, operatic etc and was interested in the beauty of old Scottish psalm tunes which he frequently recorded.
Ron was knowledgeable about Scottish music, in particular “The Gows” and therefore instrumental in replacing the old Neil Gow Memorial Stone in Little Dunkeld Churchyard which had been eroded by time and weather. This heritage has also been kept alive by founding the Neil Gow Memorial Trust and the Glenfiddich Fiddle Championship at Blair Castle.
The sound of Ron’s voice was quite unique and acknowledged by musicians and fans at home and abroad.
Many people will mourn the passing of this fine man and his unique contribution to the world of Scottish music.
We regret that space does not permit us to publish the many wonderful tributes paid to Ron, but we wish to thank all who have contributed in this way.
His Grace, the Duke of Atholl, during our telephone conversation expressed his admiration for Ron as a gifted player and knowledgeable and enthusiastic historian, who was steeped in the history of the Gows and composers of that era and their involvement with Blair Castle.
“Ron played often at Blair Castle. I always admired him as a violinist and the way in which he always cheered up anything in which he took part. He was instrumental in restoring Niel Gow’s violin and providing a proper case for it in the Banqueting Hall at Blair Castle. He will be sadly missed.” – His Grace, the Duke of Atholl
“I am deeply saddened by the death of Ron Gonnella. It is such a great loss to Scotland’s heritage of fiddle music and for my own part, feel that we are unlikely to hear the sound he made emulated. The quality of his tone and attention to technique gave his a special place amongst us.
In the late forties, I was invited to his uncle and aunt’s house in Dundee and met this slip of a lad. We played together, and quite clearly, I remember his solo rendition of “Coilsfield House.” At that time I knew we had another unique sound about to burst forth.
To the research of Scottish music, his passing marks an irreparable loss. His place on the scroll of musical fame is assured.” – Ian Powrie
“My earliest recollection of Ron was hearing his music in Canada in the ‘70s. I was privileged to meet him in Morrison Academy when I first came to Scotland with my brother John Allan Cameron and even more thrilled to be offered hospitality for two weeks during which time he took me to meet people whose names I had only read and through his knowledge I learned more about Niel Gow, Scott Skinner and many others and visited their homes, graves and musical connections.
He was such a delight to play with and he understood the Cape Breton style. His radio broadcasts were well presented and full of interesting information and good humour. He will be sadly missed by all. We have list a musical giant”. – John Donald Cameron (Cape Breton)
“Ron Gonnella was a Scots Italian who was blessed with the innate musicality of both countries. I had the good fortune to work with him on several occasions over the years and was greatly impressed, not only by his playing, but by his profound knowledge of the Scottish fiddle tradition and the lives and repertoires of the great players.
While the folk music revival gave us a host of clever young fiddlers obsessed with speed and flashy tricks, Ron, with a technique long established, concentrated on quality of tone and accuracy of tempi, with no loss of excitement. In Ron Gonnella we have lost not only a consummate musician b but a thoroughly likeable man, a true gentleman who will be much missed”. – Jimmie MacGregor
“As the type of work I was involved in with Ron Gonnella was different from most others, I would like to express my appreciation of the man and the musician.
My pianist wife Nancy, Ron and myself with voice and accordion decided in 1985 to form the Doric Trio. Our aim was to take Scottish music into the sometimes rarefied atmosphere of Arts Council clubs and provide an informal evening of Scots Songs, Airs and Dances.
These evenings proved to be very successful due, of course, in no small measure to Ron’s ability as a player but also to him skills as a communicator which seemed to draw the audience in to him sharing his love and knowledge of his subject.
The standard of his innate musicianship was very high, always producing a lovely tone and it seemed so effortless. Having one’s arrangements played by him was always very satisfying.
As musicians have to, we three travelled many miles together during our association. Nancy and I have many special memories of the man and we have so many fine memories of the performances that we shared with one of the finest exponents of his art and ambassadors that Scotland has produced.” – Roger Crook (Dunfermline)
“The first time Ron Gonnella visited me was in 1974 to see the fiddles I make. I was at Millholm, Tullibardine, Auchterarder at that time and we became good friends.
I made a fiddle for him in 1980, calling it “The Ron Gonnella” and the following year made one for his mother, Lizzie Duncan, who was also an avid fiddle connoisseur.
Ron treated my house as his second home, so much so, that he did a lot of the practice for the various functions, recordings, broadcasts etc there and my late wife helped him with the publicity and design of his record covers.
When we moved to Muthill, he was a more frequent visitor for his practice sessions and indeed was in my home in Muthill, practicing for 3 hours for another recording, not many weeks before his passing.
It is true to say that he has played every fiddle I have made since the ‘70s and I will miss his sweet tone and character of playing, as also I will miss his company. He was so well read and a lucid talker.
I feel that not only have I lost a friend, but a son”. – Duncan MacDonald
“I first met Ron Gonnella in the mid-sixties when I was producer of the Scottish Dance Music programmes for the B.B.C. Ron was a very popular fiddler and jovial personality.
Many of the bandleaders of the time tried to persuade him to play in their band. Why? Simply because of his true intonation, his lively sense of rhythm and his keen tradition. He founded the Niel Gow Memorial Trust which was instrumental in replacing the stone on the master’s grave.
He was always eager to share his knowledge and his enthusiasm for traditional music. As an adjudicator he was always constructive in his comments, and constantly stressed the good points in everybody’s playing.
Ron’s name is carved with pride in the roll of honour of those who have gone before – that elite band, who by their skill, knowledge and enthusiasm, have enhanced our knowledge and understanding of Scotland’s musical heritage.” – James Hunter
“It was with great sadness and shock when I heard that Ron Gonnella had passed away after a very short illness.
I first met Ron while he was a pupil at the Harris Academy and at that time he was keen on Scottish Country Dancing and the music. In fact, he was at that time being taught the violin by Mr Routledge Bell, one of the best known tutors in Dundee.
I had just started playing Scottish Country Dancing in St. Patrick’s Hall, Maitland Street, Dundee and Ron used to sit in and play with my band some of the tunes he knew, that must have been his first introduction to Scottish traditional music.During that period there was a great surge in Scottish music, gramophone records, wireless sets, mouth organs, fiddles and accordions and bagpipes were all in great demand for entertainment. In fact, it was an era that brought out many brilliant musicians, with their own style and choice of music.
Ron teamed up with Marcel Crow, one of his school pals, who had just formed the Tayside Band and made 3 records of Scottish Country Dance music for Beltona Records which were first class and sold well.
Still gaining experience, he later joiner Jimmy Scott’s (from Wellbank) Blue Bonnets Scottish country Dance Band and did many of their early broadcasts for B.B.C. Throughout the years he has played with many of the top broadcasting bands, T.V., radio and special programmes such as his latest appearance in Crieff Hydro with his quintettte playing light music.
He was a great composer and has had 3 volume of fiddle music published of his own compositions, also the new Atholl Collection. He has made many cassettes and L.P. records with tributes to the great fiddle masters – Niel Gow, William Marshall, James Scott Skinner and Rabbie Burns ‘The Bard’, all of whose music will aye be remembered.
Now to the man himself. Ron always kept in touch with me throughout the years, in fact he visited me at Auchtermuchty on a Sunday forenoon three weeks before he died and he was his own cheery self and not a sign of any discomfort. He was on his was to visit his friend, David Cunningham, at Cupar to discuss some music he was arranging for recording – little did I know it would be the last time I would see him. – Jimmy Shand
To me, as a youngish fiddle player in Wigtown, Ron was always a source of inspiration. Meticulously, I recorded his many radio programmes and played them incessantly. He commanded a unique style and ability which singled him out as a master of the Scottish fiddle art.
When I came to Ayrshire in the late 1960s, our paths were to frequently cross and I found him to be a most amiable academic possessed of charm and good humour.
Ron invited me to become a founder member of the Niel Gow Memorial Trust and it was in this capacity that our friendship developed. The Trust was created generally to promote the knowledge of the immense contribution made by the Gows to our National music, but particularly to address the work required to suitably restore the family gravestone in Little Dunkeld Cemetery. Ron acted as Secretary, Treasurer and enthusiastic guiding light. He organised appeal letters, meetings and his crowing glory was the Rally in Perth Town Gall in which I had the privilege of sharing the podium with the masterly Sandy Cook of Bankfoot. Mary Sandeman, Ron and Ian Powrie gave of their services for the benefit and James Hunter, Head of B.B.C. Television Scotland at the time , arranged that the show be televised. Ron even had the huge enlargement of the Niel Gow painting auctioned after the show and I think Ian bought it.
Following completion of all the work and the official ceremony in Little Dunkeld, Ron with James and I, pursued the possibility of an annual Glenfiddich Fiddle competition at Blair Castle, wherein the Gow works would for part of the repertoires. Here again success was achieved and there could be no greater honour to his memory than the securing of this most prestigious event which so effectively dominates the solo Scottish fiddle scene both for quality of performance and the scenic beauty of Blair.
Ron had a romance with the Gows and the Gow countryside, it is fitting that we remember these achievements with his so many other attributes. – John M. Mason M.B.E.
He was well read and well travelled and continually researched the history of Scottish fiddle music and composers. He travelled frequently to Canada and the United States to play, record and adjudicate at a variety of venues.
Ron was gifted intellectually and pursued a wide range of interests which enabled him to meet people from all walks of life.
His eloquence and microgenic speaking voice meant that he received acclaim on radio and television and was an obvious asset in his teaching career at Morrison’s Academy.
He enjoyed a variety of sports and music of many kinds – Scottish, classical, operatic etc and was interested in the beauty of old Scottish psalm tunes which he frequently recorded.
Ron was knowledgeable about Scottish music, in particular “The Gows” and therefore instrumental in replacing the old Neil Gow Memorial Stone in Little Dunkeld Churchyard which had been eroded by time and weather. This heritage has also been kept alive by founding the Neil Gow Memorial Trust and the Glenfiddich Fiddle Championship at Blair Castle.
The sound of Ron’s voice was quite unique and acknowledged by musicians and fans at home and abroad.
Many people will mourn the passing of this fine man and his unique contribution to the world of Scottish music.
We regret that space does not permit us to publish the many wonderful tributes paid to Ron, but we wish to thank all who have contributed in this way.
His Grace, the Duke of Atholl, during our telephone conversation expressed his admiration for Ron as a gifted player and knowledgeable and enthusiastic historian, who was steeped in the history of the Gows and composers of that era and their involvement with Blair Castle.
“Ron played often at Blair Castle. I always admired him as a violinist and the way in which he always cheered up anything in which he took part. He was instrumental in restoring Niel Gow’s violin and providing a proper case for it in the Banqueting Hall at Blair Castle. He will be sadly missed.” – His Grace, the Duke of Atholl
“I am deeply saddened by the death of Ron Gonnella. It is such a great loss to Scotland’s heritage of fiddle music and for my own part, feel that we are unlikely to hear the sound he made emulated. The quality of his tone and attention to technique gave his a special place amongst us.
In the late forties, I was invited to his uncle and aunt’s house in Dundee and met this slip of a lad. We played together, and quite clearly, I remember his solo rendition of “Coilsfield House.” At that time I knew we had another unique sound about to burst forth.
To the research of Scottish music, his passing marks an irreparable loss. His place on the scroll of musical fame is assured.” – Ian Powrie
“My earliest recollection of Ron was hearing his music in Canada in the ‘70s. I was privileged to meet him in Morrison Academy when I first came to Scotland with my brother John Allan Cameron and even more thrilled to be offered hospitality for two weeks during which time he took me to meet people whose names I had only read and through his knowledge I learned more about Niel Gow, Scott Skinner and many others and visited their homes, graves and musical connections.
He was such a delight to play with and he understood the Cape Breton style. His radio broadcasts were well presented and full of interesting information and good humour. He will be sadly missed by all. We have list a musical giant”. – John Donald Cameron (Cape Breton)
“Ron Gonnella was a Scots Italian who was blessed with the innate musicality of both countries. I had the good fortune to work with him on several occasions over the years and was greatly impressed, not only by his playing, but by his profound knowledge of the Scottish fiddle tradition and the lives and repertoires of the great players.
While the folk music revival gave us a host of clever young fiddlers obsessed with speed and flashy tricks, Ron, with a technique long established, concentrated on quality of tone and accuracy of tempi, with no loss of excitement. In Ron Gonnella we have lost not only a consummate musician b but a thoroughly likeable man, a true gentleman who will be much missed”. – Jimmie MacGregor
“As the type of work I was involved in with Ron Gonnella was different from most others, I would like to express my appreciation of the man and the musician.
My pianist wife Nancy, Ron and myself with voice and accordion decided in 1985 to form the Doric Trio. Our aim was to take Scottish music into the sometimes rarefied atmosphere of Arts Council clubs and provide an informal evening of Scots Songs, Airs and Dances.
These evenings proved to be very successful due, of course, in no small measure to Ron’s ability as a player but also to him skills as a communicator which seemed to draw the audience in to him sharing his love and knowledge of his subject.
The standard of his innate musicianship was very high, always producing a lovely tone and it seemed so effortless. Having one’s arrangements played by him was always very satisfying.
As musicians have to, we three travelled many miles together during our association. Nancy and I have many special memories of the man and we have so many fine memories of the performances that we shared with one of the finest exponents of his art and ambassadors that Scotland has produced.” – Roger Crook (Dunfermline)
“The first time Ron Gonnella visited me was in 1974 to see the fiddles I make. I was at Millholm, Tullibardine, Auchterarder at that time and we became good friends.
I made a fiddle for him in 1980, calling it “The Ron Gonnella” and the following year made one for his mother, Lizzie Duncan, who was also an avid fiddle connoisseur.
Ron treated my house as his second home, so much so, that he did a lot of the practice for the various functions, recordings, broadcasts etc there and my late wife helped him with the publicity and design of his record covers.
When we moved to Muthill, he was a more frequent visitor for his practice sessions and indeed was in my home in Muthill, practicing for 3 hours for another recording, not many weeks before his passing.
It is true to say that he has played every fiddle I have made since the ‘70s and I will miss his sweet tone and character of playing, as also I will miss his company. He was so well read and a lucid talker.
I feel that not only have I lost a friend, but a son”. – Duncan MacDonald
“I first met Ron Gonnella in the mid-sixties when I was producer of the Scottish Dance Music programmes for the B.B.C. Ron was a very popular fiddler and jovial personality.
Many of the bandleaders of the time tried to persuade him to play in their band. Why? Simply because of his true intonation, his lively sense of rhythm and his keen tradition. He founded the Niel Gow Memorial Trust which was instrumental in replacing the stone on the master’s grave.
He was always eager to share his knowledge and his enthusiasm for traditional music. As an adjudicator he was always constructive in his comments, and constantly stressed the good points in everybody’s playing.
Ron’s name is carved with pride in the roll of honour of those who have gone before – that elite band, who by their skill, knowledge and enthusiasm, have enhanced our knowledge and understanding of Scotland’s musical heritage.” – James Hunter
“It was with great sadness and shock when I heard that Ron Gonnella had passed away after a very short illness.
I first met Ron while he was a pupil at the Harris Academy and at that time he was keen on Scottish Country Dancing and the music. In fact, he was at that time being taught the violin by Mr Routledge Bell, one of the best known tutors in Dundee.
I had just started playing Scottish Country Dancing in St. Patrick’s Hall, Maitland Street, Dundee and Ron used to sit in and play with my band some of the tunes he knew, that must have been his first introduction to Scottish traditional music.During that period there was a great surge in Scottish music, gramophone records, wireless sets, mouth organs, fiddles and accordions and bagpipes were all in great demand for entertainment. In fact, it was an era that brought out many brilliant musicians, with their own style and choice of music.
Ron teamed up with Marcel Crow, one of his school pals, who had just formed the Tayside Band and made 3 records of Scottish Country Dance music for Beltona Records which were first class and sold well.
Still gaining experience, he later joiner Jimmy Scott’s (from Wellbank) Blue Bonnets Scottish country Dance Band and did many of their early broadcasts for B.B.C. Throughout the years he has played with many of the top broadcasting bands, T.V., radio and special programmes such as his latest appearance in Crieff Hydro with his quintettte playing light music.
He was a great composer and has had 3 volume of fiddle music published of his own compositions, also the new Atholl Collection. He has made many cassettes and L.P. records with tributes to the great fiddle masters – Niel Gow, William Marshall, James Scott Skinner and Rabbie Burns ‘The Bard’, all of whose music will aye be remembered.
Now to the man himself. Ron always kept in touch with me throughout the years, in fact he visited me at Auchtermuchty on a Sunday forenoon three weeks before he died and he was his own cheery self and not a sign of any discomfort. He was on his was to visit his friend, David Cunningham, at Cupar to discuss some music he was arranging for recording – little did I know it would be the last time I would see him. – Jimmy Shand
To me, as a youngish fiddle player in Wigtown, Ron was always a source of inspiration. Meticulously, I recorded his many radio programmes and played them incessantly. He commanded a unique style and ability which singled him out as a master of the Scottish fiddle art.
When I came to Ayrshire in the late 1960s, our paths were to frequently cross and I found him to be a most amiable academic possessed of charm and good humour.
Ron invited me to become a founder member of the Niel Gow Memorial Trust and it was in this capacity that our friendship developed. The Trust was created generally to promote the knowledge of the immense contribution made by the Gows to our National music, but particularly to address the work required to suitably restore the family gravestone in Little Dunkeld Cemetery. Ron acted as Secretary, Treasurer and enthusiastic guiding light. He organised appeal letters, meetings and his crowing glory was the Rally in Perth Town Gall in which I had the privilege of sharing the podium with the masterly Sandy Cook of Bankfoot. Mary Sandeman, Ron and Ian Powrie gave of their services for the benefit and James Hunter, Head of B.B.C. Television Scotland at the time , arranged that the show be televised. Ron even had the huge enlargement of the Niel Gow painting auctioned after the show and I think Ian bought it.
Following completion of all the work and the official ceremony in Little Dunkeld, Ron with James and I, pursued the possibility of an annual Glenfiddich Fiddle competition at Blair Castle, wherein the Gow works would for part of the repertoires. Here again success was achieved and there could be no greater honour to his memory than the securing of this most prestigious event which so effectively dominates the solo Scottish fiddle scene both for quality of performance and the scenic beauty of Blair.
Ron had a romance with the Gows and the Gow countryside, it is fitting that we remember these achievements with his so many other attributes. – John M. Mason M.B.E.