<sod>His father Alexander Erskine, the 5th Earl of Kellie, was incarcerated at [[Edinburgh Castle]] for supporting the [[Jacobitism|Jacobites]] in the [[Jacobite rising of 1745]]. His mother, Janet Pitcairn, was the daughter of a celebrated physician and poet. Thomas attended the [[Royal High School, Edinburgh]], and around 1752 left for [[Mannheim]] in [[Germany]] to study under the elder [[Johann Stamitz]] and returned to Scotland in 1756 as a virtuoso violinist and composer, nicknamed "Fiddler Tam".<eod>
<sod>His father [[Alexander Erskine, 5th Earl of Kellie]], was incarcerated at [[Edinburgh Castle]] for supporting the [[Jacobitism|Jacobites]] in the [[Jacobite rising of 1745]]. His mother, Janet Pitcairn, was the daughter of a celebrated physician and poet. Thomas attended the [[Royal High School, Edinburgh]], and around 1752 left for [[Mannheim]] in [[Germany]] to study under the elder [[Johann Stamitz]] and returned to Scotland in 1756 as a virtuoso violinist and composer, nicknamed "Fiddler Tam".<eod>