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In the first of an occasional series on little known Welsh customs we would like to highlight the charming ritual performed in villages throughout Wales on St Pyr's Day.
From the Wikipedia :- "On the first day of April in villages around Wales it is the custom to throw one's oldest living male relative down a well in honour of St Pyr. St Pyr was the dissolute former abbot of Caldey Island who died after falling down a well as a result of extreme intoxication. Regarded in Wales as a national hero his 'Saints Day' is celebrated annually at gatherings on village greens during which participants dance around the well with pints of real ale singing "Yo ho...ho ho ho. Throw the ole b*****d down the hole" The festivities reach a climax when the oldest male relative is shoved down the well where he is left overnight with a pail of ale which is lowered down after him."
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David Llewellyn Hits the Road for St David's Day - MidWest Mini-Tour Details
By Ceri Shaw, 2011-02-23
AmeriCymru: Hi David and many thanks for doing this interview at such short notice. Care to tell us a little about the forthcoming MidWest mini tour?
David: Yes, a cool three gig trip (hoping not too cool :O) keeping our eyes on the weather reports!)
Dave Parry of the Chicago Tafia called a couple of weeks ago and invited me to play at their St. Davids day do, and how could I say no? Id love to do it! As an independent touring singer/songwriter based now in this extremely large country, it is a Godsend to find what I gratefully call necessary angels. These are folks who are scattered across the country and some way or another have heard what you do, and have become fans. They are not usually fellow artists or venue/club owners or DJs etc., they have their own stuff to deal with, but are simply music fans, and want to help. They are also usually acquainted and regulars at a lot of the gigs in their city/area, and a word of recommendation from them or just a heres a good venue you might try ask for Tony can go a long way to opening doors. Sometimes its just a Ive got an air mattress you can crash on whenever you are in town, or Ill host a house concert here in my little apartment, just to get you going, but its a huge huge help, a way to get your proverbial guitar in the door.
Dave Parry and the Chicago Tafia, and my dear friend Katie Thompson (both AmeriCymru members) have been my angels in the Chicago area! They have done all the above for me, and it really shows that one person with a heart full of passion can really make a difference. With these guys help, we also came up with a gig to break the drive up to Chicago, and one on the way back. Big thanks!!! Here are the gigs.
Contact me if you need more info :O) david@davidllewellyn.com
I am traveling with my girlfriend, and now duo partner, Ida Kristin, who will join me on guitars and harmonies at the gigs. A very accomplished singer/songwriter and recording artist in her home country of Sweden, we have been writing and playing gigs together since my first songwriting retreat in Sweden back in 2008. And this is a nice segue into your second question :O)
AmeriCymru: You recently spent some time in Europe on a song-writing retreat. Care to tell us a little about that experience?
David: Ive been doing these songwriting retreats for a few years now, and I have to say I love them. So far Ive been asked to participate in retreats in Sweden, Crete, and Ireland not too bad for a Welsh boy from the valleys :O) As the featured writer, your duties include a certain amount of teaching, song critiquing, and organizational stuff, but really the fun is getting to meet fellow songwriters who come from all over Europe, to share tips and ideas, and get to cowrite together in a relaxed but fairly intense week of just that, songwriting!
Each retreat is different but usually you get a new cowriter each day, a topic or theme, and off you go. If you get your song done, you play it to everyone after dinner, and at the end of the week you get to play ALL your new songs at a gig or two. Did I say intense? I tend to dive in and try to write with everyone, and yes, what with trying to record rough versions of the songs, learning harmonies and guitar parts with your new partners, it can be a lot to do, but it does answer the question What could I really do if I had the chance to do nothing but focus on writing no chores, no phone calls, meals provided . . . ? There is a belief in Nashville that the good stuff comes when the Muse is present. But she/he is fickle, visits when she wants to, leaves when she wants to, so dont think shell patiently wait while you nip around the corner to grab some quick Fajitas for lunch. On retreats like these, there is so much writing and creativity going on that she sets up camp, and all kinds of good things happen.
AmeriCymru: Any plans for new releases in the near future?
David: I am recording a new CD in the next month or so. Mixed, mastered and manufactured by mid summer? Crossing our fingers. I also have plans to record a duo CD with Ida Kristin some time this year. Weve had a lot of requests for it at gigs, so we should get it done asap.
AmeriCymru: Any final message for the readers and members of AmeriCymru?
David: To all the AmeriCymru folks out there have a great March 1st! Have a sip or two of what makes you happy, and be thankful that you dont have to pin a huge, eye watering leek to your school blazer!!! Hey, the girls got to wear daffodils now wheres the fairness in that!
Best David
Dydd Dewi Sant Hapus/Happy Saint David's Day
Check out our Events page for ideas and events to help you mark the occasion.
Please feel free to add your St. Davids Day greeting in the comments boxes below:-
On Saturday the 27th of November newly formed Rhos Choir will be competing in a special concert at St David's Hall, Cardiff in the race for the 2010 Codi Canu title. The concert will be the highlight of the series, which for the last few months has followed four choirs on the journey to be crowned Wales' best community choir.This year, the series has seen four of Wales' best known faces stepping up to the challenge of conducting these choirs, with advice from some of our leading conductors.
It was fantastic news for Rhos Choir when it was announced that it would be entrepreneur Stifyn Parri, one of their most successful local talents, that would be stepping into the conductor's shoes with the help and support of experienced conductor Geraint Roberts.
Born in Rhos, Stifyn was delighted to accept the challenge, venturing back to his hometown with hopes of conducting his own people to victory. Stifyn has over twenty five years of experience in the media industry. He has starred in West End hits such as Les Miserables, national TV series' such as Brookside, and numerous productions for S4C. These days, Stifyn runs his own creative company, Mr Producer, which has been instrumental in many large-scale events over the years, most recently the 'Welcome to Wales' Concert, welcoming the Ryder Cup. With all his experience, Stifyn was an obvious choice for the series, and everyone is confident that he has all the skill to succeed as a fantastic conductor. But Stifyn would be the first to admit that conducting is not as easy as it looks, even though he enjoys every minute:
"I was brought up in the village of Rhosllannerchrugog, famous for it's many choirs! It is the most surreal and pleasurable experience to be learning how to become a conductor with my very own and brand new choir that consists of old school friends, teachers, neighbours and even my own mother!!! I'm so proud of them, they've worked so hard and deserve to win, it would be an honour to lead my home village of Rhos to victory. Please vote for us and vote for the village known for it's musical talent. Come on Rhos!!"
The concert will be broadcast live on S4C on Saturday the 27th of November between 8.00-9.00 pm, and 9.30-10.15pm. The public will be asked to choose their favourite choir, so remember to pick up the phone and vote for Rhos choir, and their conductor, Stifyn Parri.
Tickets for the live final are FREE for adults, children and concessions. Call the Box Office on 02920 878 444 or book online www.stdavidshallcardiff.co.uk
For more information on the Codi Canu series visit www.s4c.co.uk/codicanu
The Portland Welsh Society Annual Christmas Tea was held on Saturday December 1st at the Kenilworth Presbyterian Church in South East Portland.
After a hearty lunch the Mari Llwyd made the rounds with gifts of candy for the younger attendees and musical entertainment was provided by Owen and Amanda Hofmann-Smith.
The festivities were rounded off in traditional style with carol singing and a lively rendition of the Welsh national anthem.
For a fuller flavor of the event see the photos in the slideshow on this page ( we have more and will be adding them shortly )
NADOLIG LLAWEN
The Musical Program
1. 'The Lord's Prayer' ( guitar accompaniment )
2. 'What Child is This' ( to the tune of Greensleeves, piano accompaniment )
3. 'Ave Maria' ( Gounod arrangement, cello accompaniment )
4. 'Suite for Solo Cello' Bach
5. 'Mary Did You Know' ( piano and accordion accompaniment )
6. 'Holy Night' ( piano accompaniment )
Footless Crow aims to provide the best in British outdoor writing in a unique 'blogazine' format. Offering new articles and republishing classic articles from the past which have been cherry picked from UK ... Read More Here
Later this week,John Appleby's comprehensive profile of George Leigh Mallory's climbing career on Welsh rock. A golden period of exploration when he established his reputation as one of the UK's leading technical climbers. A period which saw him create some of the hardest routes of the era before his attention shifted to the greater ranges and he- in the public eye-was reborn as Galahad of Everest... Read More Here
| Description | English: Y Garn from Tryfan. Y Garn is in the centre with Llyn Bochlwyd and Llyn Idwal below, and Elidir Fawr to the right. |
|---|---|
| Date | |
| Source | Geograph |
| Author | George Tod |
| Permission ( Reusing this file ) | See below. |
