Here’s a brief overview of the development of Welsh language music through the decades.
The Welsh have long been known as the people of the ‘land of song’ and to some extent, they’re not wrong. Wales is a beautiful country with a beautiful traditional language to boot. A Celtic language in origin, Welsh has given the people of Wales a sense of identity and cultural significance. This significance is full of rich history and cultural values that are often communicated through music and song, whether that be in the most traditional sense or not. Some may argue that music produced in the Welsh language is just like any other music, but I’d have to strongly disagree.
Unfortunately, many of the earliest forms of Welsh language music have been lost throughout the generations due to the oppression faced by the language from the church and from England. Such context dates back to they days in which England would suppress any language that was not of course, English. Whilst this is devastating on many levels, during the 1860’s there was a revival of the language, and as they say, the rest is history.
Stereotypically, many are of the belief that Welsh language music solely revolves around large male voice choirs, and traditional ‘caneuon gwerin’ (folk songs). Of course, such examples are consistent of the musical art that does originate in Wales, but much like the remainder of society, the Welsh language music industry has expanded greatly. Traditional roots such as the caneuon gwerin have paved the way for Welsh language artists to express the beauty of the language through a variety of musical genres. From the birth of the Eisteddfod (a traditional music and poetry & ‘cerdd dant’ festival – that now contains a lot more than just that) - during the 12th century, to the Welsh folk songs such as ‘ Yr Eneth gadd ei gwrthod (The rejected maiden), the history is rich and continues to grow.
Although, during the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s there was a surge of popularity in regards to Welsh language music. This was particularly due yes, the popularity of traditional Celtic music as a genre, but also due to the movement against the oppression of the Welsh people and their language. Singers such as Dafydd Iwan adopted a position with Y Gymdeithas Y Iaith Gymraeg, to campaign for the Welsh Language to be considered an official language. Naturally, the promotion of protest music is one of the most significant sub-genres of Welsh music, even today (which will be touched upon later). Music has long been situated as an outlet for many forms of expression, and within Wales many of the traditional songs have a meaning based within political themes and rhetoric. Naturaaly, protest music cannot be singularly identified as simply developed by the Welsh- it’s a multi-cultural, muli-generational tool, boasting the right for expression.
A great resource for learning more about the struggle of the Welsh nationalists during that time is “Painting the world green: Dafydd Iwan and the Welsh protest ballad (2005)” by Prof. E. Wyn James, a professor at the school of Welsh in Cardiff university.
Of course, these eras also saw some of the best, well known acts to come out of Wales to rise to fame; Tom Jones and Shirley Bassey for example (to name a few) despite their content being produced in English, their welsh heritage was worn proudly on their arm - With songs such as “The green green grass of home” reminding Tom Jones of his small town upbringings. This era also saw a big career development for acts such as Mary Hopkin. Hopikn originally sang in the Welsh before being spotted by Paul McCartney on the show ‘Opportunity Knocks’ – you can find a clip of Mary Hopikn returning to preform on opportunity knocks here… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dJQR1bBFvM
The latter years of the 60’s also saw the development of the record label ‘Sain’, founded by Dafydd Iwan and Huw Jones; a record label that still exists to act as a platform for Welsh artists and their music today. As of the present day, Sain has become a household name within the Welsh music industry, with several labels located under the ‘Sain’ umbrella, they’ve signed acts such as Y Bandana and Caryl Parry Jones – some of the most well known Welsh language artists of the last 20 years.
The 70’s saw the rise of acts such as Meic Stevens (signed by Sain), and an influx of genre diversity within Welsh language music. Acts such as Geraint Jarman ar Cynganeddwyr and Trwynau Coch introduced new music with reggae and punk influence taking pride of place within their music. Here’s a song by Geraint Jarman ar Cynganeddwyr called ‘Para’ -https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usc0DiIihyc
Acts such as Anrehfn and Datblygu ruled the Welsh language music industry during the 80’s and 90’s. The music created by them helped transform the Welsh music scene to be one of embracing a new wave of groups, soloists and genres. For example, Llwybr Llaethog – a duet from Conwy – were known for their musical experimentation and variety, with their songs gaining influence from a variety of musical sub-genres. These artists paved the way for the diverse Welsh language music industry that’s visible today, particularly as it was during this time when groups such as Catalonia and Super Furry Animals began to make their way into the mainstream.
“Recruiting his friend Kevs Ford, he founded Llwybr Llaethog - a revolutionary dance outfit pioneering a bass-heavy agit-rap style with a sharp satirical edge that single-handedly invented the genre of Welsh-language hip-hop in one fell swoop.”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/music/sites/llwybr-llaethog/pages/biography.shtml
We can’t discuss the history of the Welsh music industry without paying attention to some of the greats of the 90’s. In this instance we reference to The Manic Street Preachers and the Stereophonics.
“The Manics were the first Welsh band to really make a commercial breakthrough in the 90s. Unfortunately for them, it meant they had to suffer the clichés of lazy reviewers, with endless references to leeks, daffodils and dragons. Oh, how the boyos must have laughed.”
https://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/music/sites/history/pages/history_1990s.shtml
Even though the materials produced by the aforementioned groups aren’t in the Welsh language, they often pay tribute to their heritage, and have aided in locating Welsh society and their artists in the mainstream UK/global music industry. A quick Google search will introduce you to a variety of playlists that, with a short amount of listening will provide the opportunity for understanding why they’ve had such a big influence.
Perhaps, today’s environment is where Welsh language music truly can thrive. With an emphasis on real, raw expression through drum and bass genres or the continuation of protest-based material, the Welsh language music scene is more diverse than ever. Dydd Miwsig Cymru 2020 and saw the expansion of welsh music being preformed across the UK with bands such as Adwaith (a indie band with a key political vein) experiencing their music being adopted in Liverpool.
As coined within a recent article by Vice (https://www.vice.com/en_uk/article/n7jpgq/the-unstoppable-rise-of-welsh-language-music?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter), we’re at a stage where the rise of Welsh language music is ‘unstoppable’. The music of Wales and its artists has begun to reclaim its value and cultural identification, and it’s a sight to behold. Particularly when you consider how within the last 12 months, Alffa (a blues rock duo from Llanrug in North Wales) was the first Welsh language artist to receive a million streams for their song ‘Gwenwyn’. Or perhaps most surprisingly, in January the 1983 song “Yma o Hyd” beat some of the world’s biggest acts – such as Stormzy or Ed Sheeran – to the top spot in the UK Itunes chart. For me, Yma o Hyd and its recent success is the biggest affirmation of the return and progression of not only Welsh language music, but also Welsh language culture, and just as 1983, we’re not going anywhere. Welsh language music, whether used as a political protest, or an emotional outlet, whatever its purpose, is uniting the country and bringing back a sense of identity to our mother tongue.
Annual events such as Maes B and the Eisteddfod or Tafwyl - in conjunction with small, local music venues such as Clwb Ifor Bach - truly are a safe space for the exploration and celebration of some of the amazing art this country has to offer. It’s vital that these spaces are kept alive and that the Welsh Language music industry can continue to thrive.
I’m proud to be Welsh, and you should be too.
Written by,
Tezni Bancroft-Plummer
For those interested in hearing some great Welsh language music, here are a few of my favourites (other than what’s been previously mentioned) –
Brenin Calonnau – Candelas
Effro Fyddi di – Yws Gwynedd
Ennill – Fleur De Lys
Heno Yn Yr Anglesey – Y Bandana
Llwytho’r gwn – Candelas
Sebona Fi – Yws Gwynedd
Haf 2013 – Fleur De Lys
Tyrd Mewn O’r Glaw – Caban