Don't miss this opportunity for fellowship and Welsh culture in Portland! Our daytime programming will feature four days of interesting and informative seminars, workshops, concerts & much more. An Interview with Eirian Owen, Musical Director of the Cor Godre'r Aran who will be appearing at NAFOW 2010 can be found here. More info and registration here Also appearing are:- Bronn Journey Glyn Morris Rhys Bowen

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Comment by mona everett on August 28, 2010 at 6:18am

LATE BREAKING NEWS!The Choir for the NAFOW Grand Concert, Cor Godre’r Aran, has some very good soloists, and some of these have agreed to compete in in a special solo voice competition, Fri, Sept. 3, at 2 or 2:30 pm. There will be about 6 competitors and it will last about an hour. The winner will receive the NAFOW trophy award.This promises to be an outstanding competition. Entry into the event iis free! This will be at the Doubletree-Lloyd Center in Portland, Oregon.

Comment by Ceri Shaw on February 7, 2010 at 8:24pm

Welsh Folk Dance at NAFOW WELSH DANCES The history of Welsh folk dancing is a sad one. With the advent of the Non-conformist sects in the 18th and 19th centuries, the chapels saw the Welsh folk arts and customs as sinful and not in keeping with chapel teaching. They did their utmost to stamp out all sorts of "sinful" folk entertainment except, of course, hymn singing and music in the chapels. Some saw the damage that was being done to the culture and managed to record the dances on paper. Like most music of that period, there was a lot of exchange and borrowing between Wales, England, Scotland, Ireland and Europe and a number of Welsh dances went into British/English collections, and tended to retain the original Welsh names in translation to English. By the start of the 20th Century, folk dancing contributed very little to Welsh culture. In the Twenties, a few people started to take interest in the old dances. In the 1940s, Lois Blake and Gwyn Williams led the way in reviving the Welsh dancing tradition and in 1949 the Welsh Folk Dance Society was formed, with the aim of promoting and resurrecting the old dances. Today, there are over twenty adult teams and hundreds of teams in the schools and clubs across Wales. This program is for all ages and will teach participants a number of Welsh dances, which will be taught by Sian Frick, a well-known and experienced instructor. Music will be provided by the Portland band, Beltaine. Come, enjoy a good time. SIÂN FRICK, Welsh Dance Instructor. Siân is a British national of mainly Welsh parentage. From 1984 to 1991 she attended Cymdeithas Ddawns Werin Cymru (Welsh Folk Dance Society) workshops in Wales to learn the spirited but light-footed Welsh dances, and in 1988 she earned the Cymdeithas Instructors Certificate, Part 1. From 1986 to 1992 Siân led her group Dawnswyr y Tract Cymreig/The Welsh Tract dancers, based in Newark Delaware, and in 1991 she was a member of the Dawnswyr Môn display team in Anglesey for six months. Siân is frequently invited to teach Welsh folk dance workshops and give clogging demonstrations at many of the Celtic festivals in the mid-Atlantic region. On her regular visits to Wales she has joined Welsh teams performing dances at various events such as the Gwyl Ifan (Midsummer) Festival in Cardiff. BELTAINE is a Northwest trio featuring hammered dulcimer, guitar, flute, and marimbula. They are unique in their blend of instrumentation. Their styles range from Celtic to traditional music from around the world. They do not limit themselves to any one genre. Their backgrounds include folk, rock, classical, jazz, and blues. They choose music that speaks to them. They try to put their spin on these tunes to make them unique to Beltaine. Their music is their passion, and they love playing and performing around the Northwest. They are excited to hear that others enjoy their music and they love stories about the music.

Comment by Ceri Shaw on January 31, 2010 at 6:52pm

Read our interview with Alan Thomas here:- The North American Festival of Wales - An Interview With Alan Thomas

Comment by Chris on January 1, 2010 at 10:47pm

I'm working on the folk dance part of the program. If anyone in the Portland area has some calling experience and would volunteer to help with the dances, please let the organizing group know thru Ceri.
Diolch yn fawr iawn, Chris

Comment by mona everett on December 18, 2009 at 6:54pm

Also. for anyone hesitant about singing along in Welsh during the pub night or gymanfa ganu sessions, no worries--there is a phonetic hymnal available (yes, we sing hymns in the pub, along with other songs). Also, one of the seminars is always Ysgol Gan (Singing School) to get you ready to sing in 4-part harmony (5-part, if you count the large "joyful noise" section) Gotta love the Welsh, hymn-singing at rugby and in the pubs drinking beer!.

Comment by Ceri Shaw on December 14, 2009 at 10:35am

Comment by mona everett on November 24, 2009 at 6:08pm

Well, in the past, we have featured a variety of groups from Wales--ranging from a young jazz group from Cardiff, to folk singers and harpists, to Male Voice and Mixed Voice Choirs and , soloists (often a tenor). There is always a variety. Some of the recent workshops/seminars have been about Welsh Pirates, Lovespoons, Welsh Fiddles, Folk dance (lessons and then dancing), singing practice in preparation for the Gymanfa Ganu, Welsh immigration, travel to Wales, photography, talks by modern Welsh authors--it really runs the gamut! There are always a couple sessions on learning Welsh, several Welsh films are shown, a pub night (or 2 or 3) (often with impromtu singing), and something about the local Welsh history. The tea room and marketplace are popular spots. There is always at least one optional tour of the local area as well. We've also been adding children's programming, as well. The full schedule for Portland will be available before St. Dsvid's Day. There is really something for everyone and if you have never been, you will be treated to a slice of Welsh history, and will learn something about modern Wales and meet like-minded people from all over.

Comment by Dean Edwards on November 15, 2009 at 3:58am

I am more than a bit curious about what kinds of music, presentations, and workshops will take place.

Comment by mona everett on November 13, 2009 at 7:36pm

Da iawn, Ceri! Interesting interview and nice photos of the choir. Mona

Comment by Ceri Shaw on November 13, 2009 at 7:25pm

An Interview with Eirian Owen, Musical Director of the Cor Godre'r Aran who will be appearing at NAFOW 2010 can be found HERE.

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