|
Banned
Location: York, England
Join Date: Oct 2005
Posts: 4,313
Frubals:132351
Activity:  Today:  |
In the winning of their independence by the Americans, the writings of Welshman Richard Price had been most influential. When the French Revolution helped spread ideas of liberty throughout Europe, the London Welsh, in a state we can only now describe as euphoria, saw hopes of a revival of Welsh nationhood, if not that of independence from the British Crown. Their first gesture was reestablish the moribund Eisteddfod. The centuries old festival of poetry was to be given a national affirmation, but first it needed a sense of dignity and a clothing of pageantry. Both were provided by the vivid imagination of Iolo Morgannwg. As there was a sad lack of a coherent body of Welsh cultural traditions, Iolo invented them, along with an elaborate and fancy ceremony. Most of these were entirely unknown to the Welsh people, but have since been expanded and elaborated to become a much-loved part of the Eisteddfod ever since. It was Iolo, a stonemason from the Vale of Glamorgan, who invented the Gorsedd (circle), the guild of bards that today plays such a prominent role in Welsh cultural affairs today and which, in their colorful "druids" robes, provides much of the pageantry and excitement attending the events of the Eisteddfod once a year.
In the 1860's the National Eisteddfod Society was founded, and the modern era of the competitions began. The chief contest is still that of poetry, being separated into two categories: for the Chair, and for the Crown. It is still a marvel that thousands of people gather together to hear the adjudications of the entries in the poetry competition and give their applause and admiration to the winning bard. The Eisteddfod, with its modern competitions expanded to include the arts and crafts, country dancing, folk singing, choral competitions of all kinds and drama and prose contests has, over the years, provided a tremendous impetus to the fostering of Welsh as a living, breathing language. No English is allowed on the stage of the huge pavilion. The Eisteddfod even caters to the younger crowd with concerts by modern Welsh Rock groups, and on the Eisteddfod grounds,the Maes (meadow) one can meet old friends, listen to music, browse through hundreds of pavilions that sell Welsh books and records, arts and crafts, goods made of Welsh coal or slate or wool, music and musical instruments, food and drink of all kinds (though alcohol is still forbidden); or catch up with the latest happenings at the various society tents. We must not forget, too, the yearly gathering of the Welsh Youth League (Urdd Gobaith Cymru), second in importance only to the National Eisteddfod of Wales, which also helps keeps the language and cultural traditions of the Welsh people alive by fostering competitions in singing, dancing, poetry, prose and drama, all conducted through the medium of the Welsh language among the nation's youth.
In addition to the National, there is another important Eisteddfod in Wales with, for many, a much broader appeal. After World War II, with its shocking waste of life and disruption of much that had been held dear for so long, a brilliant idea came to the mind of an official of the British Council, Welshman Harold Tudor of Coedpoeth, a little town near Wrexham, Clwyd. Harold conceived the idea of an international folk festival, conducted very much along the lines of the Welsh National Eisteddfod, but open to competitors from all parts of the world. The music organizer of the National, W.S. Gwynn Williams, was very receptive to the idea, especially as it entailed the desire of the Welsh people to contribute in their own unique manner to the healing of the terrible scars left by the War. The site chosen for the new festival was along the banks of the River Dee, in a meadow under the ancient castle of Dinas Bran, and the first Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod duly took place in the summer of 1947, with fourteen different nationalities represented. It has been held each year since, attracting many thousands of spectators and hundreds of competitors, whose colorful native costumes and delightful singing and dancing fill the streets of Llangollen for one whole week every July. (One of the early competitors was the great tenor Luciano Pavarotti, who came with his father to sing in a choir from Italy in the early years of the festival and who returned to give a goodwill concert in 1995).
Cymanfa Ganu: Hymn Singing
The next Welsh cultural tradition of importance is that of the Cymanfa Ganu. We would expect this to be an ancient custom for a writer as early as Geraldus Cambrensis (Gerald of Wales) noted in 1193 that the Welsh people: ". . .in their musical concerts do not sing in
unison like the inhabitants of other
countries, but in many different parts...
You will hear as many different parts as
there are performers who all at length
unite with organic melody." Yet the Cymanfa Ganu with its emphasis on hymn singing in parts is not an ancient event at all, for it grew out of the Temperance Movement in the mid-nineteenth century. In South Wales, Choral societies were founded as one solution to the grave problem of drink. Because of the unsanitary conditions in the rapidly-growing and hurriedly-thrown together housing developments, water was unsafe to drink and beer was drunk in prodigious quantities. This was one of the worst consequences of the industrialization that was rapidly changing the face of the valleys. To help the workers occupy their time and keep them away from the taverns, the choral movement reflected the social aspirations of the proponents of temperance. On Christmas Day, 1837, a temperance procession marched through the streets of Dowlais, joined by choirs from neighboring towns. Inspired by the success of the day's events, the Gwent and Glamorgan Temperance Movement decided to hold an annual festival of choirs and at the Eisteddfod at Aberdare of 1846, choral competition was added to the list of events. It has remained ever since as one of the most popular and best attended events. Many hymns have been written expressly for the Cymanfa. In the chapels of Wales, choral singing of the beautiful, stirring hymns went hand-in-hand with the temperance movement. In areas of increasing anglicization, the chapels offered a refuge for the besieged language, and in the great religious revivals of the late 19th century, it was inevitable that certain days a year be set aside purely for the singing of hymns. These occasions became the Cymanfaoedd Ganu,(pl) or Hymn Meetings. Conducted entirely in Welsh, they were led by conductors specially trained in bringing forth from their congregations the Welsh hwyl or emotion. Following months of rehearsals in four-part singing, the meetings often lasted all day long. With the decline of attendance in chapel going, especially over the last quarter of a century, many towns in Wales no longer hold the annual Cymanfa, but the tradition has experienced a great revival in North America, where, in a different city each year, thousands of Welsh Americans and Canadians get together to sing their beloved hymns in what has now become a four-day festival.
|