Hymns and Arias: Great Voices of Wales

(Hardback)

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Description

In this collection of essays, a group of musical enthusiasts assess the international careers of great Welsh soloists in the context of the national musical tradition. These individual careers are examined against the background of wider local traditions such as the Eisteddfod, religious festivals and male voice choirs. The emphasis of the book will be on the classical and operatic but the sheer variety and perpetually evolving nature of popular music in Wales is reflected in both general essays and in studies of two of the country's most successful entertainers. The book includes detailed chapters of Tom Jones, Shirley Bassey and Bryn Terfel, alongside contemporary music phenomenons such as The Stereophonics, Catatonia and the Manic Street Preachers.

Reviews

". . . this excellent symposium on Welsh singers." -New Welsh Review

"This collection of essays is a celebration of Welsh singing. All the great names are here, including Geraint Evans, Margaret Price, Tom Jones, Dafydd Iwan and Cerys Matthews, but even to mention some of them gives no idea of the book's coverage; over two hundred Welsh singers are listed in the index. Some of the essays deal with individual singers while others cover broader topics; each one is well researched and is written by a contributor who has an intimate knowledge of the subject . . . 'Praise the Lord!' said the Rev. Eli Jenkins, 'We are a musical nation'. Anyone who doubts this has only to read this collection of essays which will give pleasure to anyone who enjoys Welsh singing, past and present, solo and choral, classical and popular." -www.gwales.com

" . . . the most impressive publication of the year." -Western Mail Magazine

"A classic tribute to Wales' image as the Land of Song and undoubtedly the best book of the year." -Dean Powell, Literary Editor, Western Mail

Author Bio

Peter Stead is currently a free-lance author and broadcaster, and former senior lecturer in history at University of Wales, Swansea. Trevor Herbert is a Professor of music at the Open University of Wales, and is an authority on British music history and a former professional musician. Hywel Teifi Edwards (former professor of Welsh at Swansea) Kenneth Bowen (professional singer and teacher at RCM) John Hugh Thomas (Swansea Bach Choir and former lecturer, Department of Adult and Continuing Education, Swansea) Patrick Harman (broadcaster and author) Robert Bideleux (Politics Department, Swansea) Rhian Evans (Western Mail) Phil George (former Head of Arts, BBC Wales) Barrie Morgan (King's College, London) Frank Lincoln (broadcaster, actor) Geraint Lewis (former lecturer Bangor, composer, Nimbus records) Gareth Williams (professor of history, Aberystwyth) Dai Smith (former professor, Cardiff, then BBC Wales, now University of Glamorgan) Dewi Griffiths (former BBC Wales) Dai Griffiths (head of music, Oxford Brookes University)