Sunday 27 June 2010

Week 11 (day 73, 74) - Dolgellau sesiwn

I took the bus up to Dolgellau for another session.

It was the same bus driver, who when I asked how he was doing said, "I'm fair to immoral".  He always comments how I'm sneaking in my baretta disguised as a harp and tommy gun with ammo as a trombone.

It was about a two mile walk from Dolgellau up to the hotel, Gwesty Gwernan.  The walk is up a rather long hill which was hard with the harp on my back.  A woman saw me and felt sorry for me, so she ran and got her car and gave me a lift.

Friday 11 June 2010

Week 11 (Day 70 - 72) Irish dancing

Alright, some more time in Aber.

I met Harriet for some Irish dancing.  It was pretty good.  The people there were all really nice.  Though, it didn't seem that different from the Welsh dancing I'd done.  Maybe, Irish dancing is done in more of a circle rather than long lines but basically very similar.  Maybe, faster twirling as well because I do remember being quite dizzy.

Mainly, I've just been practicing and learning new tunes.  I average around four or five hours of practice a day when I'm not traveling.  Not sure how many tunes I've learned at this point.  My brain started to hurt so I turned to some other creative ventures.

Week 10 (Days 68, 69) - Aber

I definitely met Harriet for some tunes when I got back.  We've been trading and exchanges music and ideas.   She's been helping me with my harp technique, which is quite home-grown.

Harriet is really generous of her time, house and food.  Her harp technique is unbelievably good.  Very quick and virtuosic.  She learns things extremely quickly as well.  She does a ton of gigs, mostly on the road.  She has decided to stick around Aber a bit more as she's getting tired of traveling.  She was doing a gig on the weekend with this fellow from Basque.  Slightly worrying as he may have been a terrorist!  Makes for a good story for sure.  (Fortunately, I heard it all worked out just fine...)

Week 10 (Day 66, 67) - Aber and Llangranog

Well, I'm never gonna catch up but I'll try...
I worked on tunes on the Wednesday.  Did I see Harriet?  Sai'n cofio nawr.  I've met with Harriet several times, trading tunes and ideas.  She's extremely talented and generous but more about Harriet later.

Definitely went to Llangranog on the Thursday.  It took me two hours and two buses to get there.  I walked from this place called Brynhoffnant.  I hitched a ride part of the way down the steep hill.  I went to meet with Pwyll and Enfys first.  I'm related to them through the Foel family somehow but it is quite distant.  They are very good friends of my Dad's from way back.  Met Ceri Ffliwt just outside their house by luck.


Ceri Ffliwt started talking to Pwyll and Enfys in Welsh and I did my best to follow.  It was all a bit fast for me though and I was making a lot of guesses as to what they were saying.

Wednesday 2 June 2010

Week 10 (Day 64, 65) - Pencader again

Back in Pencader once more.  I rehearsed with Julie some more.  The tunes were really falling into place.

All of the songs are amazing but one in particular that she wrote is absolutely heartbreaking.  It nearly made me cry, it's so beautiful.  We played most of the day.

Julie and I went for a nice walk through the hills and farms to clear our heads.

Tuesday 1 June 2010

Week 9 (Day 62, 63) - Twmpath, Stackpole, Sir Benfro

We got up early-ish.  Sille was up already making a potato salad.  We had stayed up real late, into the whiskey, so how she was even moving is beyond me.  But she was chipper as ever.  Me, on the other hand, I was moving very slowly.  Martin, always generous, drove me to the train station in Abertawe and I caught the train to Caerfyrddin.  I waited there for a couple of hours and then caught a ride with Julie and Ceri to Stackpole Centre, which is a beautiful little retreat on the south coast of Sir Benfro.

I met the Twmpath band in it's entirety.