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Yr Alawon ~ The Tunes
Yr Wylan Gefnddu
The black-backed gull
Cân draddodiadol ac un o ffefrynnau Meredydd Evans. Mae'r geiriau'n gofyn i'r wylan am newyddion o'r holl wlad.
A traditional tune and a favourite of the great singer and tradition-bearer, Meredydd Evans’. The
words ask the gull for news from all over the country.
Tawelwch
Quietness
Yn ddistaw bach y troediodd awel fwyn So quietly a gentle breeze crept
Dros fryn a phant fy annwyl febyd fro, Over hill and hollow, my dear childhood home,
Gan ddistaw sibrwd dros y wlad ei swyn Quietly whispering its magic over the land
A rhyw lonyddwch hyfryd yn ei thro. With a lovely tranquility in its wake.
Y fath dawelwch sydd yn drysor gwlad; This quietness is the countryside’s treasure;
Hiraethodd llawer un am awr fel hon Many longed for an hour like this
Wrth ddisgwyl awel hedd as faes y gâd While waiting for a breeze of peace on the battlefield
Neu geisio cwsg â’i long ar frig y don. Or looking for sleep with its ship on a crest of a wave.
Fe ddaw tawelwch mawr pan ddaw y nos A big quietness comes with the night
Fel mantell drom a thywyll dros y tir, Like a dark and heavy mantle over the land,
Pelydrau’r haul yn suddo dros y rhos Rays of sunshine sinking into the moor
A heddwch ymhob man am oriau hir; And peace everywhere for long hours;
Ar ôl i ddyn o’i waith gael mynd yn rhydd After man is released from his work
Tawelwch fu, -tawelwch fydd rhyw ddydd. There was quietness, -there will be quietness one day.
Geiriau gan E. Mary Jones (1972)
Cerdd o waith Mary, fy mam, pan oedd hi'n 16 oed. Hon oedd y gerdd fuddugol yng nghystadleuaeth y gadair yn Ysgol Llanbedr Pont Steffan. Ymddangosodd eto cwpwl o flynyddoedd yn ôl pan oedd fy rhieni yn symud tŷ a chreais i'r gân allan o'r geiriau. Dwi hefyd yn cynnwys yr hwiangerdd draddodiadol, Si Hei Lwli, sy'n adlewyrchu'r geiriau yn y gerdd.
Mary (my mum) won her school Eisteddfod chair with this poem when she was 16. It surfaced
again when they were moving house a couple of years ago and I created a song around it. The
tune of the traditional lullaby Si Hei Lwli is also included, its words echoing the concept of sleep
being a ship on the sea.
Teifi
Mae'r gân Blewyn Glas ar Ddole Teifi yn ymddangos yn Caneuon Llafar Gwlad 2 (ed. Roy Saer, Sain Ffagan). Magwyd fy mam ar lanau'r Teifi, felly mae gan enw'r gân hon arwyddocâd arbennig. Mae nifer o benillion iddi ac mae'n gân sy'n galw am rai ychwanegol. Hefyd yn cael ei chynnwyd mae'r rîl, Hyd y Frwynen, i gadw gyda thema'r afon.
The song Blewyn Glas ar Ddole Teifi appears in Caneuon Llafar Gwlad 2 (ed. Roy Saer, St. Fagans). My mother grew up on the banks of the river Teifi and so I was immediately drawn to the title. There are many verses and it’s a song which lends itself easily to improvised words. Also included is the reel, Hyd y Frwynen (The Length of the Rush), sticking with the riverside theme.
Y Deryn Pur
The Pure Bird
Y deryn pur â'r adain las The pure bird with the blue wing
Bydd imi'n was dibryder Be a sincere servant to me
O! brysur brysia at y ferch Quickly, rush to the girl
Lle rhois i'm serch yn gynnar To whom I gave my love
Dos di ati, dywed wrthi Go to her, say to her
'Mod i'n wylo dŵr yn heli That I’m weeping salty tears
Mod i'n irad am ei gweled That I’m grieving to see her
Ac o'i chariad ffaelu â cherdded, That I can’t walk for loving her
O! Duw faddeuo'r hardd ei llun O! God forgive the beautiful
Am boeni dyn mor galed! For hurting a man so badly.
Pan o'wn i'n hoenus iawn fy hwyl When I was in good spirits
Ddiwarnod gŵyl yn gwylio Celebrating a feast day
Canfyddwn fenyw lana' 'rioed I saw the most beautiful woman ever
Ar ysgafn droed yn rhodio. Treading lightly
Pan mi welais When I saw her
syth mi sefais I stopped still
Yn fy nghalon mi feddyliais In my heart I thought
Wele'r dynas lana'r deyrnas There’s the most beautiful woman in the land
A'i gwên yn harddu'r oll o'i chwmpas Her smile beautifying everything around her
Ni fynswn gredu un dyn byw I wouldn’t believe any living man
Nad oedd hi’n ryw angyles! That she wasn’t some angel!
Roeddwn yn canu hon pan yn blentyn ond fel oedolyn, teimlaf bod galw am alaw ychydig yn wahanol. Mae'r trac yn symud mewn i'r alaw draddodiadol, Mentra Gwen, ac yn rhoi teitl i'r albwm hefyd.
I used to sing this as a child but decided to give write a new tune for it. It moves into the traditional tune Mentra, Gwen (Venture, Gwen) which also suggested itself as an album title… Mentro means to venture or to dare.
Rheged
Dwi'n mwynhau chwarae jigiau a waltsiau ar y delyn; rhywffordd ma nhw'n ffitio'n rhwydd dan y bysedd! Roeddwn yn awyddus i gynnwys walts fach hapus yn yr albwm a dwi wrth fy modd gyda hon o lyfr John Thomas (1752). Awgryma Cass Meurig, yn ei hargraffiad o'r llyfr, mai o We Are Spoiled, y daw'r teitl rhyfedd, Wiar Sbloet. Enw arall ar fersiynau o'r un alaw yw Rheged, ac oherwydd y cysylltiad gyda'r Hen Ogledd, penderfynais bod Rheged yn eithaf addas.
I really enjoy playing jigs and waltzes on the harp; somehow they fit well under the fingers! I wanted to include a happy waltz in the album and was happy to find this tune in the John Thomas Fiddler’s Tunebook (1752). Cass Meurig, in her edition of the book, suggests that the somewhat strange title Wiar Sbloet is perhaps a mis-hearing of We are spoiled. A version of the tune under the title Rheged in other manuscripts and with the connection to the Old North, I decided that Rheged would be a much nicer title to use.
Rhosyn Saron
The Rose of Saron
Rhosyn Saron a lili y dyffrynoedd ydwyf i I am the Rose of Saron and the lily of the valleys
Lili ymysg a’r drain, felly y mae f’annwylyd My lover is a lily among thorns
Cusana fi a chusanai dy fin Kiss me and I’ll kiss your lips
Y mae dy gwmni yn well na gwin Your company is better than wine
Myfi sydd yn cysgu a nghalon yn effro I sleep and my heart awakens
Llais f’annwylyd sydd yn curo My lover’s voice comes knocking
Myfi sydd yn codi i agor i’m cariad I rise and open to my lover
Myr ar fy nwylo o’m mysedd yn llifo Myrrh on my hands, flowing from my fingers
Crëwyd y gân hon allan o eiriau Caniad Solomon yn yr Hen Destament, Yn dyddio o'r trydydd ganrif CC, mae'r geiriau angerddol yn apelio'n fawr ataf a dwi'n hoffi cael f'atgoffa bod emosiynau pobl heb newid llawer dros filoedd o flynyddoedd. Wedi cyfosod â'r gân mae'r alaw draddodiadol Y Lili Ymysg y Drain, er fy mod wedi'i newid rhywfaint. Daw'r teitl hyn o eiriau Caniad Solomon hefyd.
This song has been created out of words found in the Song of Solomon in the Old Testament. Dating most probably from the 3rd century BCE, the passionate words appealed to me and the reminder that even over thousands of years, these human emotions are a constant. It’s juxtaposed with the traditional tune Y Lili Ymysg y Drain (The Lily Among the Thorns), albeit in a slightly modified form, which again, echoes the words of the song.
Hwyr
Late
Mi wela’r haul ar orwel rhudd I see the sun on a red horizon
A’i gusan olaf ar y bryn With its last kiss on the hill
A’r perlau welais gyda’r dydd And the pearls I saw by day
Yn disgyn heno’n farrug gwyn Falling tonight as white frost
Mae’r awel donnau ddôl a rhôs The waves of the breeze over meadow and moor
Yn cwyno’n brudd ym mrig yr hesg Complain bitterly over the sedge
A chri dylluan gyda’r nos And the cry of an owl by night
A etyb acen calon lesg Responds to the accent of a weak heart
Fe fu i minnau aelwyd glyd There was a cosy hearth for me
A’r gwyll yn ysgafnhau fy mron, With the darkness lightening my breast
Ond bellach fe ddaeth tro ar fyd; But now there’s a change in the world;
Mae tannau coll yn nhelyn hon. There are strings missing on this harp
Gwyn fyd yr afon ar ei hynt Blessed is the river on its journey
Sy’n pwyllo dros y graean llaith; As it treads carefully over the smooth gravel
Ni thaw ei miwsig hi fin hwyr, Its music won’t quieten as the night falls,
Pereiddia’i chân hyd ben ei thaith Its song sweetens towards the end of its journey.
J.S. Jones (1916-2005)
Ysgrifennwyd y gerdd hon gan fy nhadcu. Cyhoeddwyd cyfrol o'i waith yn ddiweddar gan fy modryb a'm mam. Mae arian gwerthiant y gyfrol yn mynd yn gyfangwbl at yr elusen Tir Dewi i gefnogi ffermwyr gorllewin Cymru.
These words were written by my grandfather. My mother and aunt recently published a selection of his poetry which is being sold to raise money for the charity Tir Dewi, a charity which provides a helpline and listening service for farmers in west Wales.
Y Feillionen
The Clover
Mae'r alaw hon fel arfer yn y cywair mwyaf ond mae un o'r fersiynau yn llyfr John Thomas yn y cywair lleiaf. Gan fod y llyfr mwy na lai yn aide memoir, tebyg mai dim ond wedi gadael e mas o'dd e ond ma rhywbeth swynol am y lleiaf.
This tune is usually found in a major key but one of the versions in the John Thomas Fiddler’s Tunebook is written in A minor. It’s probable that the lack of a key signature was simply an omission (the other two in the book are in A major) but there’s something enchanting about the minor key. It happened that the original manuscript was open at this page when I saw it at the National Library of Wales.
Y Dydd Drwy’r Ffenest
A set of three traditional jigs.
Gorymdaith Gwŷr Cyfarthfa (The Men of Cyfarthfa’s March)
Y Dydd Drwy’r Ffenest (The Day Through the Window)
Llancesau Trefaldwyn (Girls of Trefaldwyn)
Gobeithio bod tair jig yn D yn gweithio'n iawn mewn set! Mae Y Dydd Drwy'r Ffenest yn dod o Llyfr John Thomas a dwi'n meddwl bod y teitl mor hyfryd.
Can I get away with three D major jigs in a set? Let's hope so! Y Dydd Drwy'r Ffenest comes from the John Thomas Fiddler's Tunebook and I think the title is lovely.
Cyn Gwawr
Before Dawn
Ces i f‘ysbrydoli i ysgrifennu'r darn adfyfyriol hyn gan eiriau'r bard 6ed ganrif, Aneirin, yn ei arwrgerdd Y Gododdin yn ystod yr amser cyn refferendwm yr Alban yn 2014. Roedd yn amser emosiynol iawn. Fel Cymraes o'r Alban, dwi'n hoff iawn o hanes Brythonaidd yr Alban sydd wedi'i gadw mewn enwau llefydd ac afonydd, ac ysgrifennwyd y gerdd yn Lleuddiniawn (nawr Lothian), yn yr hen Gymraeg.
I was originally inspired to write this reflective piece of music by words in the 6th century epic poem, Y Gododdin, by Aneirin. It was 2014 in the run-up to the referendum in Scotland and a time of heightened emotions. As a Welsh-speaking Scot, I find myself drawn to the Brythonic history of Scotland, mostly preserved in place names and river names and this poem was written in what is now mid-lothian but in a language which is an ancestor of modern Welsh. The line Kynn gwawr dyd dilin, meaning “Before the dawn of the next day”, seemed like an appropriate title for that time.