This is an enjoyable CD of songs
by the Welsh composer Gareth Glyn. They have been composed over his entire
career with the earliest dating from 1970 and the most recent in 2015. They are sung here by tenor voice, but not
all were first conceived in this form. The first, eleventh and the last feature
all ‘Three Tenors’. Glyn is not afraid to use ‘modern’ technology: he is
perfectly happy to feature keyboards, bass and drum kit where he feels it is
appropriate.
I want to reflect on what for me
were highlights. The opening song, Gwynt yr Haf (Summer
Wind) is possibly the most appealing of the set. This was composed in
1974 and was subsequently recorded by the Welsh five-piece female vocal group
Sidan. The song is all about strolling with one’s lover in the countryside,
presumably Welsh, on a beautiful summer’s day. It is powerfully sung by the
‘Three Tenors.’
The second song on the disc is much more in the mould of
an art song. Araf y Tipia’r Cloc (Slowly
the Ticking Clock) was written in 1970; it is the earliest work on this CD. The
composer explains that the poet describes ‘a traditional Welsh kitchen
displayed in a museum, but longs to see and hear the family which would once
have occupied it.’ It is a moving number that reveals Glyn’s skill at setting
words and creating an appropriate musical mood.
The most significant work on this disc is the first
recording of the song cycle I Wefr Dadeni
(Life
Reborn) composed in 1995. It was commissioned by Wynford Evans (1946-2009).
After recovering from surgery, Evans ‘vowed to travel widely giving concerts to
celebrate what he saw as his ‘rebirth’.’ The five songs all reflect this idea
of rebirth.
The opening number, Y Pair (The
Cauldron), compares a ‘coal-blackened collier,’ entering his tin bath to a
warrior placed in the Cauldron of Rebirth found in the great Welsh legends known
as the Mabinogion. The second song,
more predictably, majors on Golgotha
and Christ’s suffering and resurrection. The concept of Resurrection is
continued in the song Eirlysiau (Snowdrops),
where the poet sees the early snowdrops as an allegory for believers at the
Last Judgement ‘clad in dazzling white raiments.’ Equally symbolic, is the Y
Gwanwyn (Spring) which matches the ‘birth’ of an early primrose with the
revelation of the empty tomb. The music here is passionate and reflects the
fast-paced poetical examination of metaphors connected with this new birth. The
final song is all about the onset and implications of middle and old age. Again,
Sialens (Challenge) is an ardent song
which concludes with the challenge ‘I’ll not surrender, but come young and
free/I know, from my sore strife, when that shall be.’ It is an effective and
demanding song cycle that deserves much better recognition. All the songs in
the published cycle have English lyrics too, so the material is there for
anyone who might consider making a recording in that language.
Turning to a different genre, Fy
Ngeni dan Felltith Mam (Born under a Mother’s Curse) was taken
from the musical ‘Gwydion’. This was first heard at the 2015 National
Eisteddfod. Glyn has provided a new arrangement of this song with the refrain
including the ‘three tenors.’ It is a rather splendid number which is probably
better than anything written by Andrew Lloyd Webber (in my opinion!). The song
derives from the Mabinogion legend of
Blodeuwedd, where a young man complains to his mother that she has laid three
curses on him: one of these is that he could never have a human wife.
The final track also features the three
tenors. Carol y Seren (The
Star Carol) is one of the composer’s most popular pieces. The carol was a
winning entry in a 1984 competition to write and compose a carol for Trebor
Edwards. Glyn’s wife provided the text. He has arranged this attractive number
for many combinations, including soloists, massed choirs with orchestra and
‘everything in between. It is, as they would say in the North of England ‘a
reet good sing.’
It was unfair of me to select only nine of
the songs on this CD. I enjoyed all of them. Up to now I have only really known
Gareth Glyn as an orchestral composer. Certainly, based on the works presented
here, Glyn deserves an accolade for his vocal music which provides ‘excellent
examples of his skill for setting words, clothed in the most loving and
sensitive melodies and harmonies.’ (Dr Alwyn Humphreys MBE, CD liner notes).
One of the problems with this CD
release is the lack of an English translation of the songs. Most CDs of lieder
and song that I have reviewed provide this essential facility which allows the
listener to engage fully with the singers and the songs. I accept that that the
gist each number is presented in English in the liner notes.
It would be a pity if this
attractive CD does not gain traction beyond the Welsh border, simply because most
people do not understand the language. The rest of the liner notes are given in
both languages.
The sound quality of this disc is
excellent. Whether it is the singers, the piano or the keyboards, it is all superbly
performed.
I did feel that the programme was
a wee bit short: 49 minutes does seem a little mean for a CD these days. I am
sure that Gareth Glyn has many more songs up his sleeve that could have been
included.
On the other hand, this disc
presents a song-cycle and 14 other songs which are all approachable, enjoyable,
and with limited resources for non-Welsh speakers, sometimes exciting and at
other times quite moving.
Track Listings:
Gareth GLYN (b.1951)
Gwynt yr Haf (Summer’s Wind) (1974)
Araf y Tipia'r Cloc (Slowly the Ticking Clock) (1970)
Llys Aberffraw (The Royal Court of Aberffraw) (2007)
Brodyr Maeth Hywel (The Royal Court of Aberffraw) (2007)
I Wefr Dadeni (Life Reborn) (Song Cycle) (1995) Y Pair (The
Cauldron); Golgotha; Eirlysiau (Snowdrops); Y Gwanwyn (Spring); Sialens
(Challenge)
Carol yr Alarch (The Swan Carol) (1989)
Fy Ngeni Dan Felltith Mam (Born under a Mother’s Curse)
(2015)
Llanrwst (1988)
Ionawr (January) (2001)
Eirlysiau (Snowdrops) (2001)
Crafangau (Talons) (1970)
Carol y Seren (The Star Carol) (1984)
Rhys Meirion, Elgan Llŷr Thomas, Rhodri Prys Jones
Annette Bryn Parri (piano and keyboards), Owen Lloyd-Evans
(bass), Graham Land (drums)
Rec. Stiwdio Sain, Llandwrog April-June 2017
SAIN SCD2768
With thanks to MusicWeb International where this review was first published.
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