Poet Gwyneth Lewis’s first play is on its way! Her version of the Greek myth Clytemnestra, will be staged by Sherman Cymru between April 18th and May 5th.
She chose to set the story in the near future. Oil has run out and the world fights for food. To save his people, Agamemnon sacrifices his daughter to his barbaric new allies. With the fury of a mother betrayed, Clytemnestra waits for his return.
Adultery, power and revenge drive this new telling of a Greek legend. Rehearsals are well under way.
An interview with Gwyneth about the play is on the Sherman Cymru website and a preview can be found at Buzz
Caernarfon’s Harp Festival is being held in Galeri today and tomorrow, and tonight Pethe talks to two of Wales’ most famous harpists who play a major part in the festival.
The main purpose of the festival is to provide opportunities for young harpists to enjoy differnet kinds of music and learn more about the instrument. There is also an opportunity to perform solo, in groups and to receive lessons from renowned international harpists.
Part of the festival this year looks at two people who were extremely important to the history of the harp, who co-incidentally, were born only days apart – one in France and the other in Wales.
Sébastien Érard
SEBASTIAN ERARD was born on April 5th, 1752 in Strasbourg. He was a man who delighted in inventing and solving problems, and it was his genius that led to the creation of the modern pedal harp.
A few days earlier, harpist EDWARD JONES, was born in Llandderfel. He made an important contribution to Welsh culture by collecting airs and old penillion and published them in 1784 in the volume “Musical and Poetical Relicks of the Welsh Bards” (digital version available here). He was harpist to King George IV and was know as “The King’s Poet”.
To celebrate the contribution of these two greats, CATRIN FINCH, Prince Charles’ first Royal harpist, will be giving a concert on Tuesday, April 3rd, to demonstrate how the instrument and it’s music has developed from Erard and Jones’s era to modern times. She will also be performing contemporary music on the electric harp.
Opening the festival, ELINOR BENNETT will be playing music by Edward Jones and his contemporaries on harps made in 1807, 1830 and 1904 by Sebastian Erard himself. Tonight on Pethe, Elinor will discuss the importance of Edward Jones and Sebastian Erard and here exclusively for Pethe, is her performance of the first movement of Dussek’s Sonata in C Minor.
The festival programme is available here and tickets for the concerts gan be found on Galeri’s website
Chloe Needham who works mainly in watercolour and papercutting.
And Annwen Burgess whose urrent collection of paintings and drawings draws on family life and those little everyday objects.
Delyth Gordon discusses the exhibition while Rhun interviews two of the exhibiting artists, Eleri Jones and Nerys Jones.
Nerys Jones’ work satirises the idea of the domestic goddess, and she feels that there is too much pressure on women to “do it all themselves” while trying to run a successful family, home and career. However, the interest in traditional handicrafts is growing, and this during a period of recession. The word ‘nostalgia’ is often used when discussing the influence of women like Cath Kidston and Kirstie Allsopp. Are we just romantically yearning to live in another era or is there real value in making things ourselves?
According to Rhiannon Parry, the editor of Y Wawr magazine, everything comes around again, and she is not surprised that handicrafts have once again become fashionable. They never went out of fashion for her!
So does the recession have anything to do with the increase in popularity? Not in Rhiannon’s opinion. “Too much is made of the recession. In the 30s there was a serious recession, and many men took up knitting the. They were good at it too – very fast knitters!”
She does however champion the quality of clothes made by hand, and does see herslf saving money by making them. “If you get good wool, the garment lasts, and keeps you very warm.”
So where to start? Rhiannon thinks people don’t get taught how to knit these days, but if they get the chance, they can quickly learn, and she is glad to see the burgeoning of knitting and sewing clubs throughout the country.
“There’s nothing better than meeting someone with the same interests, and compare notes. Clubs and groups like this do people so much good. Its a way to relax and personally, I almost have to do it!”
Broadcaster and author of Welsh baking blog Paned a Chacen, Elliw Gwawr, has just started a knitting group in Cardiff.
While living in London she started going to classes and groups where she learned how to knit, sew, make candles and so on. Although she remembers doing some crafts with her mother as a child, there was no neccesity to carry on and so she forgot many of the skills. She believes that many young women today are trying to re-learn the crafts so they don’t become forgotten.
If this is a reaction to the recession in some way, Elliw doesn’t think that one can save a lot. “wool is expensive! But the feeling of having achieved something, of creating something from nothing is a great feeling!”.
Elliw’s group meet in the bar at Chapter Arts centre and she admits that socialising was one of the reasons for setting it up. “Going out a lot costs a lot, but this is a way of entertaining ourselves fairly cheaply.”
Rhun recently visited a sewing group organised by Menter Caerdydd, and the item wil be shown on Pethe on March 19th.
Oriel Pendeitsh, Caernarfon is open 10.00 – 3.30 from Monday to Saturday, and the Wyth exhibition runs until March 17th.
Two years ago, on the very first programme, Pethe asked a number of familiar faces about which books they would to choose to give as gifts. Here are some of them.
Tudur Lloyd Evans chooses the autobiography of a popular football player.
Myrddin ap Dafydd chooses and old book which could be of use in the future
Elinor Bennett chooses a book of Welsh airs collected by a blind harpist
Cefin Roberts chooses a very valuable copy of one of Welsh Theatre’s classics.
Beti George chooses an epic novel set in Russia during the Revolution
Arwel Roberts chooses a triology of books which he rates highly but wouldn’t be to everyone’s taste.
Remember our competition to win a stack of books. The closing date is March 1st. In the meantime a discussuion has started on twitter about giving and reciving books as gufts. Follow the discussion by using #llyfrynanrheg
Thanks to the publishers for letting us show the books
Gwynedd Council are also offering books as gifts this year – in their libraries! More details here
By the way, if you live anywhere in North Wales and want to join your local library, do it quickly and you could win an iPad!
Nia talks to Rhys Iorwerth, winner of the bardic chair at the 2011 Eisteddfod, about his love for Cardiff City, and he also reads two brand new poems about Ninian Park and his favourite pub, the Canton Hotel.
This is an item broadcast originally on ‘Pethe’ back in March 2011. Neil Jones from Beddau collects Groggs , and when Pethe visited the company’s headquarters , they were putting the finishing touches to a Grogg of Wales’ rugby captain , Sam Warburton.
In a special edition of ‘Pethe’, Rhun ap Iorwerth looks at the story of two films from the 1930s. The films are based on the tales of a wild group of bandits from the Dinas Mawddwy area. Dating from 1936 and 1938, this could be the earliest example of a colour film to have been made in Wales. In the following clip, the programme’s Director Angharad Griffiths talks about “The Bandits of Mawddwy”.
‘Pethe’ speaks to some of the characters who took part in the film and finds out more about the people behind the venture. We also get a taste of the special evening when the film was shown recently in Dinas Mawddwy.The full movie can be view at the Archive of Screen and Sound. www.archif.com
On ‘Pethe’ this week, Rhun ap iorwerth speaks to Gerwyn Williams about his new volume of poetry. Here is an opportunity to hear the poet himself, reading one of the poems from his collection, ‘Rhwng Gwibdaith a Coldplay’. We also discover what the poet likes about cookery books.
