A post currently going the rounds on Twitter and Facebook references an article in the Independent which quotes this old Welsh phrase approvingly. To read the article go here:-

A passion for the poetry of nature: writer Robert Macfarlane is on a quest to reconnect children with the outdoors

We have all been told at some point that we need to calm down, relax and take a walk in the woods. This old Welsh phrase captures that sentiment perfectly.

Dwi wedi dod yn ôl at fy nghoed. = I have returned to my senses/regained my mental equilibrium.

Literally: I have come back to my tree/s.

Clearly, these boys in Llanelwedd School, Builth Wells needed to chill before they entered the classroom!

Today,  BBC Cymru Wales  and  Arts Council of Wales  are excited to announce the names of twelve acts selected from across Wales to be part of the  Horizons  in 2018. 

Horizons is a unique showcase of new, independent contemporary music in Wales, supporting and promoting emerging Welsh music talent to wider audiences. Nearly 300 artists applied for a place on the project, which is now in its fourth year. 

A diverse list of a dozen of the finest emerging acts from across Wales, this year’s Horizons intake is notable for featuring strong, unique female musicians with 10 of the 12 made up of female solo artists and acts featuring female members. All 12 artists have a unique contemporary sound covering musical genres from indie, reggae, rock, folk and blues. 

The Horizons project will be bringing music to many festivals over summer 2018 starting with a launch show at this year’s   BBC   Music’s Biggest Weekend Fringe Festival  in Swansea ,  where Huw Stephens will showcase some of the acts live on  BBC Radio Cymru . Tickets for the showcase are available from the Horizons website (link below). 

The twelve selected Horizons artists are:  

Adwaith  Carmarthen trio craft brilliant bilingual songwriting; their recent single ‘Fel i Fod’ has been streamed over 100,000 times on Spotify. 

Aleighcia Scott  Cardiff based reggae singer with a unique style and vocals whose wowed crowds in Wales, UK and Jamaica. 

Alffa   An exciting teenage two piece rock n roll band from Llanrug who are inspired by the blues. 

Campfire Social  A Llangollen collective whose exquisite knack for vocal harmonies and catchy instrumental textures earned them a slot at a Korean festival with Focus Wales last year. 

CHROMA   Fearsome Pontypridd rock trio led by Katie Hall, one of the most charismatic frontwomen Wales has produced in quite some time and a band BBC Introducing booked for Reading and Leeds last summer. 

Eadyth  A unique young Welsh language electronic producer from Merthyr,  whose futuristic and empowering sound is influenced by urban, soul and electro. 

Himalayas  An incendiary rock four-piece from Cardiff, they have been delighting crowds at This Feeling gigs across the UK, and showcased at SXSW for BBC Introducing this March. 

I See Rivers   A Tenby adopted female trio hailing originally from Norway crafting their own brand of awe-inspiring float folk. Through a studio in West Wales they found themselves drawn to and embraced by Wales. 

Marged  Welsh language cutting-edge pop star with evocative vocals and lyrics that chart self-discovery, she recently supported Katie B at a secret London show. 

Nia Wyn   An incredible voice and songwriting talent from Conwy whose work encompasses folk, country and pop she recently worked with Paul Weller on new songs. 

No Good Boyo  Cwmbran four-piece whose rousing celtic folk-inspired sound has delighted crowds at the National Eisteddfod of Wales and Lorient Festival, France. 

The Pitchforks  A young Tonypandy band whose floor-filling indie rock sound made them one of Radio One’s Huw Stephens’s ‘Ones to watch for 2018.’  

The 12 artists will be offered a platform at events across Wales and on BBC Wales’ national radio services - BBC Radio Cymru and BBC Radio Wales.  

Horizons acts were selected by a panel of experts from within the partnership and the wider music sector. Panel included Bethan Elfyn (BBC Wales), Aeron Roberts (ACW), Joe Frankland (PRSF), Eluned Haf (Wales Arts International), Dwynwen Morgan (BBC Radio Cymru), Dan Potts (BBC Radio Wales), Helen Weatherhead (BBC 6Music), Rachel K Collier (Musician), Dom Gourlay (Drowned in Sound), Simon Parton (Swansea Music Hub), Bill Cummings (Sound & Vision PR), Feedy Frizzi (Moshi Moshi Management), Liz Hunt (Wales Goes Pop!), Jason Camileri (WMC Platform Project), David Owens (Media Wales), Estelle Wilkinson (Talks on Tour), Owain Schiavone (Y Selar), Richard Parfitt (Musician/ Education), Helia Phoenix (Visit Wales/ We Are Cardiff).  

Lisa Matthews, Portfolio Manager at the Arts Council of Wales, says: 

“We’re proud to support Horizons for a further year and see another 12 artists have a creative and potentially career changing year. There have been some incredible opportunities created so far and we’re looking forward with excitement more incredible music experiences.”  

Bethan Elfyn, Project Manager of Horizons at BBC Wales, said: 

“The Welsh music scene has probably never seen such a time as this - a real explosion of creativity in so many towns and cities, and so we’ve been absolutely spoilt this year with the selection of talent.  We’ve got an incredibly diverse shortlist of artists, and we can’t wait to follow their journey for the next year. A few of the acts will be familiar names but there’s also bound to be one or two musical surprises for people to discover.”  

Joseph Williams from the band Himalayas, one of the twelve bands selected said:

“It’s a real pleasure to be a part of BBC Horizons along with other great Welsh artists. We’re looking forward to working closely with the Horizons team to help progress and develop as a band.”  

Horizons  is a unique showcase of new, independent contemporary music in Wales.  Now in its fourth year, Horizons is a collaboration between  BBC Wales  and  Arts Council of Wales .The  Horizons  project aims to be a comprehensive showcase of promising talent in Wales.  From providing promotional and performance opportunities. 

Music fans can follow the Twitter account @horizonscymru and  facebook.com/horizonscymru  for all the latest news.

bbc.co.uk/horizons

AmeriCymru: How did Estron come to be formed?

John: We're basically a family and friends band - I've been doing stuff with my daughters, Micky and Danny ever since they were quite small but in 2012 we started playing with Holly Robinson, a really talented and well known fiddler here in Pembrokeshire, and coined the name Estron for the band. Jess Ward joined us with her harp two years later. I suppose the band really got going after Micky and Danny moved on from the instruments they'd learned at school to things they wanted to play for themselves. Micky learned clarinet to begin with but took up the ukulele and now she plays both with Estron, while Danny abandoned the trombone for the Welsh pipes - she borrowed a spare set I had and taught herself how to play surprisingly quickly. I suppose it helped that she'd been exposed to my own playing her whole life!

AmeriCymru: What can you tell us about your most recent album 'Gwawr'?

John: We recorded Gwawr in May 2015. We wanted to capture the music we had been playing since we started and before we moved on to new material. I've been playing this music for a long time now and I guess the reason we're playing this stuff is mostly that the girls have been exposed to it all their lives so that to them this is what they associate with Welsh pipes, whereas for Holly and Jess it was all new and exciting. To Micky and Danny this music is just `normal' everyday stuff. I suppose that's what makes it `folk' music.

AmeriCymru: When did you first become interested in the Welsh pipes?

John: I started playing bagpipes in about 1990. The first set I had was a set of smallpipes from the Early Music Shop which I made from a kit. After putting it together I realised that I could make these things so I then went on to make a set of, I suppose you could describe them as `Border pipes' in G which I mostly played for the Morris team I was a member of. Then in '97 or '98 I met Ceri Rhys Matthews and became a member of Pibau Pencader, a Welsh piping club he'd started. There was something like ten people in it, a mixture of raw beginners and experienced pipers. There was a need for instruments and myself and John Glenydd started making pipes for the other members, and later to sell to other people as well. We were making all kinds of things from simple diatonic clarinets to bombardes and pibgorns, and bagpipes based either on the Breton veuze or ones which used a pibgorn as the chanter. Meanwhile Ceri was teaching us all his Welsh pipe music which by the nature of the instruments is quite a lot different from much other Welsh folk music. It was a great time and later I also played with Ceri in a pipes and drum band called Pibe Bach, playing both here in Wales and further afield. We even got touring work with the British Council in places like Oman, Palestine and Libya.

AmeriCymru: If someone wished to master the instrument, where would they go to acquire a set of Welsh pipes? How hard is it to learn to play the pipes?

John: Acquiring a set of Welsh pipes is not so easy at the moment. I don't know whether John Glenydd in Llanfihangel ar Arth in Carmarthenshire is still making pipes - I don't have his contact details but you could probably find out by contacting Ceri Matthews. I was making pipes myself until a few years ago but I went down with asthma which is very sensitive to wood dust so I've had to keep out of the workshop. Having said that, recently I've been teaching Danny how to make pipes and she's managed to acquire very good woodturning skills so we'll have to see how this develops. There are other people making pibgorns - Gavin Morgan in Merthyr Tydfil springs to mind. A lot of pipers here also play the Spanish Gaita which is pretty good for playing Welsh music on.

The pipes aren't particularly hard to play - they have open fingering much like a tin whistle which beginners find much easier than that of other pipes, such as Scottish ones. The hardest part is disassociating the blowing from playing the tune - with a bagpipe you play the instrument with a constant pressure on the bag with your arm and you only blow into the instrument when you need to keep it topped up with air.

AmeriCymru: Where can readers go online to buy or listen to your music?

John: Gwawr is available as a download (or as a CD) from Bandcamp. There's a link to it from our website ( www.estronband.blogspot.co.uk ). You can also find a solo album I made a few years ago, `Cerrig Dymuniad' on there as well as Jess's first solo harp album `The Mermaid's Lament'.

AmeriCymru: Any final message for the readers and members of AmeriCymru?

John: It's important that we keep this music going in this age of globalisation - otherwise we're going to lose it. Welsh culture has always been under a lot of pressure from across the border in England and it's important that we keep our cultural differences. We all need our roots, our differences.

Wish your mam a happy mother's day in Welsh this year (Sunday May 13th in the U.S.):-

Sul y Mamau Hapus

phonetically: seal uh mameye hapis (approx)

Here is my pronunciation sound file but I prefer the video version below

BBC Wales and Arts Council of Wales are today announcing that the search for Horizons artists to join its 2018 project is now underway.  The applications process is now open and the 12 successful acts will be supported and promoted in various ways by Horizons over the next 12 months.

Horizons is a unique showcase of new, independent contemporary music in Wales.  Now in its fourth-year, Horizons is a collaboration between BBC Wales and Arts Council of Wales .

Since its inception in 2014, Horizons has given a platform to over 36 emerging artists from Wales giving them support and mentoring to help them reach new audiences in Wales, the UK and beyond, and supported many more at festival stages and help release ambitions through the Launchpad fund.

The Horizons project aims to be a comprehensive showcase of promising talent in Wales.  From providing promotional and performance opportunities, over the past four years Horizons has provided new Welsh acts with a breadth of support and some unforgettable experiences as they start their journeys into music.

Horizons acts have been showcased at some of the biggest festivals at home and internationally from Glastonbury,  The Great Escape, Festival No.6, Sŵn, to Eurosonic and SXSW and performed sessions at the legendary Maida Vale Studios .  In the three years of the project previous Horizons alumni include Candelas, Swnami, CaStLeS, Violet Skies, Afrocluster, Baby Queens, Kizzy Crawford, Seazoo, The People the Poet, Reuel Elijah, Danielle Lewis and many more who have benefitted from the Horizon’s Project.

- The 12 artists will be offered a platform at events across Wales and on BBC Wales’ national services - BBC Radio Cymru and BBC Radio Wales.

- Acts who want to be considered fill in a form online via bbc.co.uk/horizons . Horizons acts will be selected by a panel of experts from within the partnership and the wider music sector.

The Horizons project will be bringing music to many festivals over summer 2018 and will offer more exciting opportunities to Welsh musicians later in the year through its Launchpad funding scheme.

Also new for this year , The Horizons Project has hand picked 12 'Horizons bloggers' who will help spread the word about the Horizons 12 new acts for 2018. Providing personal, insightful and in depth coverage of the acts selected with blogs, podcasts and exclusive content. Horizons Bloggers will also be appearing on panels and on the BBC to help promote the acts and the project's work online and on social media.

Music fans can follow the Twitter account @horizonscymru for all the latest news.

Violet Skies, one of the artists from the 2015 Project says:

“It’s was a mad year for me as part of the Horizons scheme. I’ve been lucky enough to tick off a lot of things from my musical bucket list - The Great Escape, Festival No.6, Sŵn, Maida Vale and now, I’m looking forward to Eurosonic and SXSW festival. It's been a lovely little Welsh family of talented musicians and a really good support team - it's nice to turn up at festivals or a show knowing you have people there to help you. Writing and collaborating with other artists has been a highlight too, and having so many others going through the same as you is so reassuring.”

Lisa Gwilym, BBC Radio Cymru presenter said:

“What I enjoy most about the Horizons project is the opportunity to get to know 12 artists so much better. To be able to follow their journey over the year – from all the festivals to the famous Maida Vale studios – is extremely exciting. I can’t wait to hear and see the range of music on offer from the Horizons artists this year.”

Iolo Morganwg is an enigmatic historical figure in the Vale of Glamorgan and beyond. Gareth Thomas' novel I, Iolo , published this week by Y Lolfa, uses research and evidence recorded by his contemporaries and academics to recount his prodigious and astounding story. Iolo Morganwg had many faces: stonemason, self-taught scholar, poet, hymnist, politician, patriot, revolutionary, druid, failed businessman, drug addict, campaigner for human rights and perpetrator of the greatest act of literary forgery in European history.

The closing years of the 18th century were, in Iolo Morganwg's words, an age of 'unparalleled eventfulness' and he was in the thick of it; a young man of prodigious talent and boundless energy, drunk with words, outraged by injustice and in thrall to the spirit of liberty sweeping across Europe. The scene moves from Cowbridge to the grand drawing rooms of Mayfair, from Gorsedd ceremonies on inhospitable hillsides to the luxurious bordellos of Covent Garden, from his cottage in Flemingston to a hearing before the Privy Council in Downing Street.

Having been inspired by Iolo's story whilst at the National Eisteddfod in Llandow, Gareth Thomas set about learning more. As well as visiting places associated with the bard, such as his memorial at the Church in Flemingston, Gareth also researched the historical figure, reading the work of Gwyneth Lewis, former National Poet of Wales, Geraint Jenkins, Dr Mary-Ann Constantine, an academic specialising in Romantic-era Welsh literature and others. He came to the conclusion that here was a story with real contemporary significance, "the more I learnt, the more I marvelled at his story. It's a tale that needs to be told".

Here is a novel to introduce Iolo Morganwg, his opinions, adventures and the events which gained him a reputation as trickster and forger, to the world. A Welsh version of the novel, Myfi, Iolo, was published at the end of 2017 and has received enthusiastic reviews by the press and was described as ‘a fascinating novel about a fascinating person’ by Dr Mary-Ann Constantine.

Cowbridge History Society, Cowbridge Library, Cowbridge Bookshop and Y Lolfa have teamed up to organise the launch of I, Iolo as a special celebration of the town's most famous - or most notorious - son. Carys Whelan will chair and ask the questions. Two well known actors, Danny Gregan (Stella, Casualty) and Eiry Palfrey (Pobl y Cwm, Poncho Mamgu) will provide a reading, taking the parts of Iolo Morganwg and his long suffering wife Peggy.

Gareth Thomas’ roots are in Cwm Rhondda. He studied drama at Barry and London and worked in England as an actor, teacher and director. At fifty he learnt Welsh and seven years ago he moved to the Vale of Glamorgan and currently lives in Cowbridge.

I, Iolo will be launched at Cowbridge Library, Old Hall Gardens at 6.45pm, to start at 7pm on Monday 30 April 2018.

I, Iolo by Gareth Thomas (£9.99, Y Lolfa) is available now.

Wales has been plagued by an infestation of "white mountain rats" or "woolly maggots" for many centuries. The recent sightings of giant cats on the hillsides ( 'Zombi Cathod Mawr' in the vernacular )are believed to be a gift to the people of Wales from the mighty Merlin who has, of course, been sleeping in a cave for 1500 years (approx) awaiting the call to come to the aid of his countrymen.

Until now sheep have outnumbered the human population of Wales by a ratio of four to one. It is to be hoped that these figures will improve now that the mutton munching monsters are breeding in the wild.

The "Zombi Cathod Mawr" are mentioned in the Mabinogion and were used by the "Welsh" Celtic tribes ( Silures, Ordovices etc ) in battle against the Roman legions very much in the same manner as Hannibal's elephants. Unfortunately the Romans learned very early on that it was easy to distract the Cathod Mawr by driving flocks of sheep ahead of their legionary formations. This would enrage the Cathod who would disperse in furious pursuit of the sheep thus largely negating their usefulness for military purposes. A legionary commander is quoted by Tacitus as saying:- "Semper in excremento, sole profundum qui variat!!!" , when he first saw Cathod Mawr in battle formation .

The Cathod Mawr were thought to have become extinct some time in the Dark Ages but were obviously sharing a cave with Merlin, Arthur and his Knights, Owain Glyndwr etc etc awaiting the call.

by Iolo Multnomah

Find more Welsh humor and Welsh jokes on AmeriCymru