Music in Twentieth-Century Wales - Term Paper Example

? Music in Twentieth Century Wales Introduction Music in the Welsh community is important to every person notwithstanding the age of the singer, listener or the composer or his affiliation. Therefore, Wales holds dear its numerous orchestra groups, choirs, musical groups and the ensembles plus the composers. It is country renowned for its world famous classical singing acts, very highly rated brass bands, internationally renowned opera groupings and the successful composers and orchestral musicians.1 In the twentieth century there has been a reawakening of the music sang or heard in Wales that is usually characterized by vocal performances, competitions in festivals or what is known as ‘eisteddfod’ and major developments in choral music. Through education and the support of patrons, Welsh music has set into a vigorous motion that encompasses other musical horizons that has led to a significant transformation of music that is performed in Wales.2 This has included instrumental music, chamber music plus symphonic output music.3 The creation of ensembles at Welsh universities and the establishment of a national orchestra coupled with the British Broadcasting Corporation national Orchestra of Wales has given rise to an unrivalled interest in instrumental music either orchestral or chamber. Composers of the twentieth century have also added an impetus towards the interaction of Welsh classical music and music from other parts of the world. Prominent artists to have come from Wales include Mansen Thomas, Daniel Jones, Alun Hoddinott and others form the current crop of musicians. Wales has a different kind of music as compared to music from other parts of the world, that has given it the title “the land of song”, and the music is normally associated with deep male voice exemplified in bands and choirs such as the Treorchy Male Voice Choir. In the twentieth century, an upsurge of national and international acts such as the Manic Street Preachers that sang a new crop of music quite distinct from the usual Welsh tunes. The Welsh songs in the twentieth century and beyond have been characterized by narratives done in dramatic fashion, contrasts and climaxes that may be thrilling in nature. These are performed by bands composed of people who appreciate brass bands and their percussive effect. In the twentieth century, the importance of music and its performance in the Welsh society especially in the education sector has been emphasized through different media and performances. Different researchers have shown that the music is developed with a deep focus on festivals, brass bands, choirs composed of males and emergence of mixed choirs. Other modes include the development of music competitions covering Welsh music and their performance at all stages in the society. At the beginning of the twentieth century and beyond, Wales has seen an upsurge music groups playing rock and pop through groupings, ensembles, bands or individuals.4 Individuals include such persons as Dave Edmunds, Shakin Stevens and Shirley Bassey who have revolutionized the music society in Wales. Groups of singers include john cale of the Velvet Underground while popular bands in Wales include the Amen Corner, The Alarm and many other groups. The Welsh National Eisteddfod5 is a major festival that provides an opportunity for the Welsh to celebrate their culture especially their music. It is normally held every year and in different venues and every or most members of the Welsh community gather to watch harpists and bards perform songs whereby the singers are accompanied by harps and the performance is competitive.6 In Wales, most of the choirs are male dominated that have been known to belt good tunes around the world. One of the best-known male choir bands of the twentieth century that has promoted the virtue of Welsh music is the Treorchy and the Morriston Orpheus male voice choirs that have toured the whole world with great performances. Recently, other choirs have come up and grown popular, for example the Froncysylite’s choir, which has performed both in Wales and internationally. In these performances, the Welsh harp which is the national instrument of Wales especially the triple harp that is a three-stringed harp has come in handy. It is more popular than the normal harp, which only has a row of string and it is used as an accompaniment during the performance of songs. In the twentieth century, the harp, which is a national instrument in Wales, has been used for the performance of traditional melodies by artists such as Catrin Finch. The Wales Millennium Centre hosts the Welsh National Opera that is a touring opera company that performs classical music in Wales and different parts of the world.7 Others include the Welsh Proms, which is a festival that brings together top orchestras of the world that compete for prizes and accolades. These include conductors, soloists, and a series of orchestral concert series that includes the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. At these events, a lot of entertainment is offered including all forms of Welsh music including pop, rock, folk, jazz and rhythm and blues. One Welsh harpist and composer by the name John Thomas has a direct impact on the development of virtuosic harp repertoire in the Welsh music culture in the twentieth century. Through his influence, there was constant development of the repertoire virtuosic harp literature and the recognizing of the double-action pedal as used in concerts while at the same time maintaining and promoting his welsh culture in relation to music. He collected and preserved Welsh Airs and participated in several eisteddfodau by lecturing on Welsh music history at the same time playing and teaching about the harp as a symbol or instrument of welsh music culture. By departing from the traditional Welsh music culture of the three stringed harps, Thomas made compositions for the modern pedal harp and put in use virtuosic techniques that had not been previously tested by the Welsh music society. Because of his contribution, Thomas is recognized as a renowned harpist in the twentieth century that reconfigured the performance of the Welsh music in the society. Ty Cerdd-Wales Music Centre This centre collaborates with musicians and organizations in Wales and making sure that Welsh music is ably represented both in Wales and internationally. With a membership, exceeding four hundred member societies composed of singers and performers whereby it encourages benefits associated with the benefits of sharing Welsh music at almost every level of participation. Through the Ty Cerdd, the organization acts as an advocate for Welsh music both locally and internationally through the promotion of concerts through the grants it gives out and the repertoire provisions. It also organizes performances, workshops, recordings of Welsh music for the artists at the Wales Millennium Centre and other parts of Wales. The Ty Cerdd has therefore been heralded as an important member of the development of Welsh music and its heritage as it drives creativity; development promotion and the performance of music in welsh both in Wales and internationally. Pop Music in Wales in the Twentieth Century The origin of the current Welsh popular pop music can be traced to the cultural history of the Welsh especially the traditional Anglo-American connection. The Welsh language and the media have played an important role in the development of the music through broadcasts carried out in Welsh especially the Welsh speaking station of the British Broadcasting Corporation that has emphasized the speaking and singing in the Welsh language.8 It can therefore be said that the origins of the modern Welsh pop music in the Twentieth Century is as a result of political and social relationship that is got from the activism of language, the media and the p[production and reproduction of pop music that takes the shape and development of Welsh culture as it exists today. Since the beginning of the twentieth century there existed, pop music that focused on the Welsh language and it was listened to with the more popular English songs that the Welsh people also listened to or sang. A mixture of light ballads and songs could be deemed as sentimental in nature that grew in popularity due to their performances at orchestras and through playing on the gramophones. Therefore, the new bands and orchestra groups that cropped up became the new frontier for the dissemination of Welsh music that greatly contributed to their spread all over the Welsh territory and it was a first in the world especially the orchestra.9 One area in which the popular Welsh culture of music developed greatly was through the chapels and houses of worship, which fostered the desire of the Welsh people to have a great desire for some form of entertainment from amongst them. Since the mid twentieth century, the Welsh people have continued to mobilize themselves in numerous street protests and demonstrations that culminated in popular Welsh-language popular music. The Role of the Media in Welsh Music in the Twentieth Century Through the establishment of the Broadcasting Council for Wales in 1953, the Welsh people were able to come up with different radio stations that broadcast only in the Welsh language that helped in promoting the Welsh popular culture of music. For example, Radio Wales and Radio Cymru radio stations created in the mid twentieth century merely air their programs in Welsh. Though the establishment of these stations were met with utter hostility, there began a program to establish a strictly speaking Welsh station to cater for the needs of the Welsh population.10 Through contributions made in Welsh language in these Welsh –speaking stations, there was light entertainment such as through programs such as Noson Lawen that helped in the creation of audiences for the popular songs done in the Welsh language. The contemporary welsh culture of music in the twentieth century therefore began through the efforts of Triawd y Coleg. The Welsh language and Education in Music In the early stages of the twentieth century, there was a surge in the activism geared towards the revival of the Welsh language as a medium of performing music fuelled by the surge in popular Celtic music as experienced in Wales and the areas surrounding it. Through groups and other performers, they toured all over Wales and the world making the Welsh music quite popular among the areas they toured. Through the establishment of courses in ethnomusicology at Welsh universities notably The University of Bangor, students from both abroad and within the confines of Wales were able to learn the Welsh language and integrate it in the performance of music. This acted as a catalyst for the performance of Welsh songs through in-depth academic research into the traditions surrounding the Welsh culture of music. The result of this is that there has been an upsurge of welsh musicians with a deeper understanding and appreciation of welsh music and culture and the traditional aspects of it. Presently, there is a lot of welsh music that can be attributed to the language activism and the education of Welsh curses in institutions of learning. For example, societies in Wales such as CLERA has contributed in the development and promotion of traditional instrumental music that is associated with the welsh people. Conclusion Welsh-speaking citizens of Wales have always turned to folk tradition when discussing their music culture due to its inspiration in their performances or their heritage. However, there are those new generations of citizens who have integrated modern trends in the performance of Welsh music in the twentieth century. This is because they have derived a new way of sharing the confidence that they have attained either through education or through learning the Welsh language that has translated into a new wave of Welsh music far from the traditional folk music. This has either been through modern instrumentation, beats and rhythms brought about by the interaction of Welsh musicians and the immigrant populations present in Wales who have integrated their timbres, instruments and forms of music. Through partnerships initiated by the Wales Arts International and the British Council, the Welsh music culture has reached out to the world thus having an influence on the traditional Welsh music culture. References Beryl Bowen James and David Ian Allsobrook, First in the World. Columbus: University of Wales Press, 1995. Davies, John. Broadcasting and the BBC in Wales. Columbus: University of Wales Press, 1994. Allsobrook, David Ian. Music for Wales: Walford Davies and the National Council of Music, 1918-1941. Columbus: University of Wales Press, 1992. Miles, Dillwyn. The Royal National Eisteddfod of Wales. Swansea: Christopher Davies Publishers, 1977. Graham, John. A Century of Welsh Music. London: K. Paul, Trench, Trubner & co., ltd. 1923. Ellis, Osian. The Story of the Harp in Wales. Columbus: University of Wales Press, 1991. Crossley-Holland, Peter. Music in Wales. London: Hinrichsen Edition, 1948. Fawkes, Richard. Welsh National Opera. London: Julia MacRae, 1986. Hlll, Sarah. Blerwytirhwng?: The Place of Welsh Pop Music. Farnham: Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2007. Gwynn Williams, W.S. Welsh National Music and Dance. Llangollen: Gwynn Pub. Co., 1975. Read More