Tryweryn Bill

In the late 1950s Liverpool City Council decided that the city would soon require an additional source of water for the city. A scheme was conceived whereby a valley would be flooded with water and turned into a reservoir. It was decided that eight hundred acres of land that formed Tryweryn and Capel Celyn would be the ideal land on which to construct the reservoir, and on August 1st 1957, the Tryweryn Bill entered Parliament, sponsored by Liverpool City Council and supported by Harold Macmillan’s Conservative administration (including the then- Minister Of Welsh Affairs), and passed despite the opposition of almost all Welsh MPs. The bill allowed the compulsory purchase of the required land, amounting to twelve entire farms, land from a further four, and the entire village of Capel Celyn, including the cemetery, displacing around seventy people. This would be the destruction of an all Welsh-speaking rural village, where the Welsh culture was being represented in its truest form. Although the drowning of the village did not take place until 1965, I feel it would still be interesting to write a song that would project the feelings towards the bill, and the uncertainty that surrounded their situation.

Studio Day 5

Today was all about tying any lose ends and pinning the sound I was after exactly as I wanted it. I was given some advice when mastering it to not bring the track volumes to today's standard as tracks on the radio these days are heavily compressed then the volume brought up very high, this means a big difference in volume between today's tracks and ones of the 50s.

Studio Day 4

Today was all about treating what was recorded so the songs could sit in-between actual Welsh folk songs of the 50's and not stand out. It was essential to get the right amount of reverb on the tracks but not make it sound artificial. As Tryweryn is the thickest track on the EP in terms of instrumentation, I decided to start with it as work on the other tracks around it. This will give the EP some consistency. But as the microphone was of high quality, an AKG, and the live room pretty 'dead' sonically, I had to give the recording some life, but making sure I didn't over produce and tamper with the sound too much as this would not have happened back in the 50's. Below is a picture of an old pherograph reel to reel that was used and a picture of the mixing desk. 

Studio Day 3

It was another superb day in the studio today. Everything is now recorded which leaves me with two days to mix and master everything. I got there first thing in the morning to sort out the piano from yesterday, it actually took me longer than I though but it was done by lunch time. My Dad then came in to record the vocals for the track, called Tryweryn. This came out very well but I still need to tinker with the piano to get the sound that I'm after, this will be done Friday. My cousin, Arwel then came in to record the final song with my Dad, called Dognau, he played the cornet for the track. Out of all the songs I feel this is the one that captures the essence of the 50's folk music in Wales the most. This is because of the freedom I had to develop the melody in a more fun and non serious manor, as the rest of the tracks have a more serious lyrical context to them. The choice of cornet could be seen as a strange one, but I felt it suited the theme of the song which was about the rationing after the WWII very well as brass instrument were very common during this time. Overall, I'm very pleased with how the last two days have gone, seeing the songs I have written come to life is definitely the most enjoyable part of the project. The next two days is going to be a bit slower and all about really capturing the sound of the 50s.

Studio Day 2

Well technically this was day one. I'm very pleased with how today went, I managed to record two full tracks of vocals, one of which is accompanied by a strange guitar/ banjo instrument that the technician (Luke) of the studio played. This was not part of the plan at all, but the song did need something else to it and it came about through a jam really. The old man and Luke  went into the studio and had one or two runs through the song before I pressed record. It was recorded in one take, even though it could be 'improved' slightly by tightening up, I felt that the recording would lose it's character. I feel this song captures the idea of folk music brilliantly, where two guys that have never before met each other get together and play music...this is especially true to Welsh folk music of the 50s. I managed to get hold of  a new pianist today too, a friend of my dad. But unfortunately the piano tuner that I was promised to sort out the acoustic piano is not available until Friday which leaves it too late to record any new material. This left me with having to record using the keyboard, which is not the best sound at the moment. But I do have the option of changing the default triggered samples for other...and hopefully better ones! It's vital when listening to the track to not be able to notice that it's a keyboard that's being played! Going in early tomorrow to tidy up the piano and finish the vocals for the remaining two tracks.

Pictures from the first day recording and a short clip of Luke and my dad going over the song together.

Link to The Studio Website

http://www.stiwdioun.com/en/ourstudio/

Studio Day 1

I am in the studio this week. Having a few last minute problems with the piano in there which is not ideal. The piano tuner was not there today meaning I had to cancel on the piano player I had found so I couldn't get any recording done. The next problem is that that I now have to find a last minute pianist as the previous one is working the rest of the week. I will try to get them in on Wednesday or Thursday, leaving Friday completely free to mix and master everything. Recording most of the vocals tomorrow hopefully.

Lyrics

The lyrics are now coming together. I have 3 songs finished, two of which are vocals only tracks so those two are now ready for recording which will be happening next month. I have written a simple piano score for the song, Tryweryn, now I need to arrange a pianist to come in and record for me.

Here are the Lyrics for the song Dognau (Translations to come).

Brechdanau spam i frecwast

Brechdanau spam i de

Heb pres i’r farchnad ddu

Heb pres am banad o de

Or diwedd dyma ni heddwch

Ond rydym yn dioddef o hyd

Blynyddoedd ar ol y bomio

Wel, dyna chdi rhyfel y Byd

Caeth menun ei werthu yn raddol

Mewn owns 2, 4 a 6

Dwyn fferins gan fy mrowd i

Ac ynte yn rhoi sgrech

Dim esgidiau ar fy nhraed ers misoedd

Heb ffrwyth yn fy mol ers pryd

Pwysigrwy y llyfrau dogni

Wel, dyna chi rhyfel y Byd

Composing

I am aiming to compose and record 5 tracks for the LP, all of which will have a protest music themed lyrical content to them. It is important to do research for the understanding of the situation in Wales during the 40's and 50's so the lyrics can reflect the social and political climate of that time. I will try to find 5 different topics of protest to make it more interesting.

Track List.

1. Brifddinas

2. Glowr

3. Dognau

4. Tryweryn

"Look At Wales!" - 1950s color travelogues

Welsh Coal Mining Industry

Coal mining was one of the busiest industries in Wales up until Margaret Thatchers reign has Prime Minister. It was a family affair, successive generations worked down in the pits, often from a very young age and low pay. There is a long list of coal mining disasters over the years, this highlights the dangers the miners were facing every time they went down to the pits. Some of the dangers faced underground include suffocation, gas poisoning, roof collapse and gas explosions. This would make seeing your husband/ dad leaving for the pits every morning a horrible experience. 

Music in Wales during the 1950s

After the second world war two significant musical organisations were founded, the Welsh National Opera and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. This saw Welsh composers moving away from choral compositions to instrumental and orchestral compositions. But Welsh folk music was still strong with the likes of Meredydd Evans heavily involved with the folk revival in Wales. 


In 1954, Meredydd Evans recorded his landmark album Welsh Folk Songs. Since then, Evans has created a long and distinguished career as a professor of philosophy, writer, performer, television producer and above all, advocate for the Welsh language and culture.

Below is a link to the BBC Wales site where there is an article on Welsh folk music. 


http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/music/sites/folk-traditional/pages/about_traditional_02.shtml