We are so excited to hear that some of the stories that we found while researching Merched Chwarel have made their way into Gafael Tir, an online show telling the story of land rights and protest in Wales. The show is in four parts, and the women’s stories are thanks to the creative talent of Siân Miriam, that some of you may remember as one of our wonderful workshop leaders in Canu Chwarel Singing Slate.

We thought you might be interested to watch the show and celebrate Merched Chwarel coming to life: Siân says that stories of women feature throughout, with our very own Amazonian Alice Griffith (the butcher of Talysarn) in part three.

I first saw an early version of Gafael Tir in the studio of Julie Gritten (one of our Merched Chwarel family, see her story here) and was blown away. I can’t wait for this new iteration.

Here’s a link to the bookings:

Cymraeg

English

More (bilingual) details below:

(scroll down for English)

Gafael Tir

Sioe ar-lein sy’n adrodd stori hawliau tir a phrotest yng Nghymru.

Mae’r sioe yn dilyn hynt a helynt y werin a’u brwydr dros fywyd gwell. Adroddir eu straeon i gyfeiliant hen faledi a chaneuon, a chawn glywed am frenhinoedd, ffermwyr yn croeswisgo, pregethwyr radical, gweithwyr tir ac undebau. Dyma fil o flynyddoedd o hanes wedi ei wasgu i mewn i 4 pennod ar-lein. Ynghyd â thynnu ar gelfyddydau gwerin Cymru, mae’r sioe’n cyffwrdd ar wleidyddiaeth, hawliau dynol, rhyddid meddwl a mynegiant, yr hawl i wrthdystio a hanes democratiaeth ym Mhrydain.

Y perfformwyr yw . . .

Owen Shiers: Cerddor o Orllewin Cymru. Ei brosiect diweddaraf ydi ‘Cynefin’, sy’n cyflwyno cerddoriaeth a straeon colledig Ceredigion. Eleni rhyddhaodd yr albwm gwych ‘Dilyn Afon’ ac yn 2019 cafodd ei enwebu fel yr artist unigol orau yn y Gwobrau Gwerin.

Siân Miriam: Storiwraig o Sir Fôn. Enillodd Siân Wobr Esyllt Harker, sef gwobr chwedleua i ddatblygu llais newydd i ferched ym myd stori. Yn sgil hynny, mae Siân yn paratoi comisiwn chwedleua ddwyieithog newydd sef Coed Sy’n Siarad / Trees They Talk – fydd yn cael ei berfformio yng Ngŵyl Beyond The Border yn 2021.

Gwilym Morus-Baird: Cerddor o Wrecsam. Mae Gwilym yn gerddor brwd ac wedi treulio’r blynyddoedd diwethaf yn ymchwilio ac yn dysgu cyrsiau ar chwedloniaeth Geltaidd.

Bydd y pedair pennod Cymraeg yn cael eu perfformio drwy feddalwedd Zoom rhwng Mis Hydref a Mis Rhagfyr eleni:

Pennod 1 - Tywysogion a Thaeogion Sadwrn, Hydref 31ain (Cymraeg)

Pennod 2 - Hil a Therfysg Sadwrn, Tachwedd 14eg (Cymraeg)

Pennod 3 - Dŵr a Thân Sadwrn, Tachwedd 28 (Cymraeg)

Pennod 4 - Cynnal Cymru Sawdrn, Rhagfyr 12fed (Cymraeg)

Tocynnau

1 bennod - £7 (gostyngiad incwm isel £4)

4 pennod - £22 (gostyngiad incwm isel £16)

I archebu tocynnau, ymwelwch â’r dudalen hon

Am fwy o wybodaeth, gwelwch y dudalen Facebook . . neu’r wefan:

Gafael Tir

(Hold Land)

An online show that tells the story of land rights and protest in Wales.

The show explores the history of y werin (‘the Welsh common folk’), and their struggle for a better life. Their tales are told and their old ballads are sung as we meet kings, cross dressing farmers, radical preachers, land workers and unions; a thousand years of history squeezed into 4 online chapters. Drawing on Welsh folk arts, the show touches on politics, human rights, freedom of thought and expression, the right to protest and the history of British democracy.

The performers are. . .

Owen Shiers: A musician from West Wales. His latest project is ‘Cynefin’, which presents the lost music and stories of Ceredigion. This year he released the fantastic album Dilyn Afon and in 2019 was nominated as best solo artist at the Folk Awards.

Siân Miriam: A storyteller from Anglesey. Siân won the Esyllt Harker Prize, a storytelling prize for developing a new voice for women in storytelling. As a result, Siân is preparing a new bilingual storytelling commission, Trees They Talk, which will be performed at the Beyond The Border Festival in 2021.

Gwilym Morus-Baird: A musician from Wrexham. Gwilym has spent the last few years researching and teaching courses on Celtic mythology.

All four English language episodes will be performed through Zoom software between October and December this year, with a choice of following the series on a Sunday or a Thursday:

Chapter 1 - Princes and Paupers Sunday, October 25th Thursday, October 29th

Chapter 2 - Race and Riots Sunday, November 8th Thursday, November 12th

Chapter 3 - Water and Fire Sunday, November 22 Thursday, November 26

Chapter 4 - Sustaining Wales Sunday, December 6th Thursday, December 10th

Tickets:

1 chapter - £7 (low income reduction £4)

4 chapters - £22 (low income reduction £16)

To book tickets, visit this page

For more information, videos and music visit the Facebook page

. . . or the website

Chwarel Dinorwig: Llun Lindsey Colbourne, 2018

March 3, 2019

Allan o Fath – Beyond Measure

Working practice blog by Lindsey Colbourne, March 2019

I was sad as a child, when they filled in the sand quarry. Just up the road from our house, it was somehow separate from the world, and I loved it. Bulldozed flat, it turned into nothing but a boring, grassy field. So I laughed out loud with shock about 20 years later when I first saw Chwarel Dinorwig Quarry. It was love at first sight. The sheer scale and complexity of its holes, worked faces and tips, the colours and constructions resulting from the re-forming of an entire mountain. Brazen - yn blwmp ac yn blaen [which translates as “blurry and tight” on google translate, but I believe a better translation would be ‘bluntly, with no holds barred’: both seem good here]…

January 31, 2019

Y Cwrlyd Llechen - The Slate Quilt

Blog by Marged Pendrell

The inspiration for this Cwrlyd Llechen came originally from seeing the ornate slate roofs of Normandy. I was aware of the ornate slate roofs of North Wales, but had not seen roofs on this scale (whole villages) and intricacy.

Being on holiday with my family (which included my son in law Kaz, a heritage slate roofer working in Blaenau Ffestiniog), meant that we spent a lot of time studying these roofs.

The intricate patterns of the overlapping slates and the way they were moulded to the overall roof shapes, made them look more like soft, carefully laid covers or patchwork quilts. There was a similarity in the repeated patterns that is inherent to both techniques.

Slate roofs with their origins in the quarries have always been associated with men whereas the quilt which has always had a domestic history is a skill always associated with women. Could these two skills be brought together?

December 19, 2018

Canu Chwarel Singing Slate

“Welsh women are culturally invisible" - Diedre Beddow

Merched Chwarel really enjoyed the recent programme on Radio 4 (many thanks to Anna Jones for telling us of it!), in search of the voices of women in Wales, including contributions by Meredid Hopwood. We really recommend a listen! We particlarly liked the idea (based on the analysis of historian Diedre Beddow) that although stereotypes of Welsh women were used to police the roles of women, some women were able to work with them and reinvent them. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0001mtr

As the radio 4 programme says, the male voice choir and male poets are well known in North Wales. But what of the women?…

Merched Chwarel @ Gwyl Lechi Bro Ffestiniog (17 of 84).jpg

September 28, 2018

Merched Chwarel @ Gwyl Afon Ogwen River Festival, Bethesda

Dewch i gwrdd â Merched Chwarel yng Ngerddi Capel Jerwsalem Dydd Sul (30/9) rhwng 12 - 4.30yp, cyfle i weld a trafod sut mae ein prosiect yn datblygu.

A oes ganddo’ch stori i rannu?

Hoffwn ddarganfod unrhyw straeon merched Bethesda, yn ogystal a hanes lleol o safbwynt y ferch. Croeso mawr i ddod ac unrhyw beth i dangos – mae popeth o ddiddordeb!

Gafael Tir

Tocynnau

Gafael Tir

Previous blogs

Working practice blog by Lindsey Colbourne, March 2019

Blog by Marged Pendrell