The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #66304   Message #2668380
Posted By: sian, west wales
30-Jun-09 - 05:55 PM
Thread Name: Welsh language folk music
Subject: RE: Welsh language folk music
John, that LP and some other material was reissued quite recently by Sain Records as Mered but it looks like it's out of stock. It's very good: 2 CDs and a nice meaty booklet to go with them. Although Sain seems to be out of it at head office, I imagine it can be found at some Welsh book shops.

There is a video interview on the Smithsonian Folklife Festival website at present which is worth looking at. He tells a very interesting story about one of the songs on the CD which was written by a Welsh ex-pat in the 19th Century as an anti-slavery song. There are also audo interviews with both Mered and Phyllis in the Smithsonian archives now (Mered's is in Welsh with outline notes by the interviewer - me.)

Mered is now 88 and Phyllis is 86 (87 this Saturday) and they're going strong. They both have written books which are going to press soon; Phyllis' will be the first english language history of Welsh traditional music since 1935.

sian