Alexander Prince
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Aberdeen, Scotland, he was first given a concertina at age 8 by his music shop-owner father, who wanted to give him something to do after a broken leg rendered him immobile. Of this event, Prince said, "I am, or was, alas an infant prodigy. It was an accident, primarily. I was 8 years old, and I broke my leg. I had to lie in bed, and that was the start."[4] He started to perform while still a youth, and by 1889 London's The Era newspaper mentioned him in a review of the club Alhambra Palace: "Alexander Prince plays the concertina with great effect, and is rewarded with much applause."[5] After performing at the Glasgow Exhibition at age 20, Prince went on to perform internationally, including a 1904 tour in South Africa.[4][6]
Prince was among the first recorded concertinists, starting with cylinder recordings for Edison-Bell circa 1904.[3] He released the first of his records with Zonophone in February 1906. He later released works under Columbia Records[7] and other labels through the 1920s. Several were under the alias George King.[6] Prince's popular records were reprinted under budget labels in the United States and in the United Kingdom.[8]
When not on tour, Prince spent his later years in Nottingham. He died in 1928.[6] References
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