We’ve finally found time to organise some gigs. See the diary page for more details but here is a summary. And we’ve been very fortunate to be invited to the Three Choirs event in London next year.
Monday 24 June, the Old Windmill, Coventry 7.30 p.m.
Monday 15 July, the Humber, Coventry 7.00 p.m.
Saturday 28 September, busking in Nuneaton town centre, 10 a.m.
Saturday 12 October, St John the Baptist Church, Coventry 7.30 p.m.
Monday December 2, St John the Baptist Church, Coventry 6.00 p.m. Not a gig but a Plygain Service but we will be contributing some songs.
Sunday 12 January 2025 Hen Galan and Mari Lwyd, the Old Windmill, Coventry 7.00pm.
Friday 28 February, St David’s celebration, the Humber, Coventry, 7.00 p.m.
Friday 16 May Three Choirs Event, Welsh Church of Central London
Côr Cymraeg Coventry have been invited to take part in a fundraising event in Solihull in November. Harmonie Wind Band are raising money for a bursary in honour of their conductor who passed away recently. The bursary will be used to provide music lessons for a local child who shows promise but whose family are unable to afford lessons.
Côr Cymraeg Coventry have been invited to sing at Coventry Cathedral before this year’s Peace Lecture.
The Peace Lecture is being delivered this year by Roger Harrabin, Energy and Environment Analyst at the BBC, on the subject of technology and climate change.
It’s a prearranged evening of Welsh singing to celebrate St David’s Day. Anyone is welcome. It’s not a performance or gig or concert, just people singing round the table in the pub – people like you! Come and have a go, join in or just have a listen.
But I don’t know the words
Neither do we!
Lyric sheets will be available on the night. You will pick up some choruses
quite easily and we can even teach you some songs beforehand if you are really
keen!!
But I don’t know any Welsh
That’s not a problem, nobody is listening to see if you get the words or the tunes right, it’s just a lot of fun having a go. It’s like singing at a football match, nobody is checking.
I can’t sing at all/don’t fancy singing this time
That’s ok, you don’t have to take part. We welcome anyone who would like to come and enjoy the atmosphere.
Can I bring an instrument and play along?
Yes of course, you are very welcome to bring an instrument and play along. Chord sheets will be available for guitarists.
If I bring my guitar/other instrument can I sing or play something myself?
The idea of the evening is to showcase Welsh culture. If you know something Welsh – either Welsh language or having a connection to Wales, or a Welsh folk tune or maybe a cover of a song by a Welsh artist then yes please go ahead!
Does it have to be music?
No, it can be anything, a story, poem, anecdote, bara brith, anything at all.
Will there be any opportunities for Welsh learners to practice their Welsh?
Yes there will be other Welsh learners there and maybe one or two first language speakers too, so please have a go.
We’re holding a Cymanfa Codi’r To (communal sing-along) at the Old Windmill, Spon St CV1 3BA, at 8pm on St David’s Day, that’s Tuesday 1 March. The idea is that we sing some songs and provide lyric sheets and chord sheets, and everyone else joins in with the words or guitar chords, or percussion, or whatever instruments they care to bring along.
People are welcome to contribute songs and tunes themselves if they know something relevant to Welsh music and culture, it doesn’t have to be in the Welsh language.
We’re hoping to borrow some flags from the Cambrian Society and decorate the place a bit!
In our next outing on January 14th we were the guests of Coventry Cambrian Society for an evening of Bingo and Welsh Song at Hen Lane Social Club. We sang a few plygain, some Welsh classics and some songs in English. We would like to thank our friends at Hen Lane for an excellent evening and furthermore one in which several members of Côr Cymraeg Coventry won prizes both large and small. Below shows the club adorned with flags and daffodils before the event.
We had a great time at the Old Windmill singing plygain for the Old New Year and lots of people showed up and even told us they liked us! This picture was taken shortly before we started. From left to right you see Paul, Gareth, Andy, Peter and Trevor.
Côr Cymraeg Coventry have arranged (at the last minute) an evening of plygain singing at the Old Windmill pub in Spon Street Coventry, on Wednesday January 12, starting at 8pm. Plygain are a bit like folk style Christmas carols but are sung equally before and after Christmas. January 12 is the “old New Year”, that is to say the day that would have been New Year’s Day under the Julian calendar. In 1752 a correction was made to the calendar removing eleven days, as the calendar had gone out of step with the movement of the earth round the sun. The new calendar which we still use is called the Gregorian calendar. The Julian date for New Year is still celebrated in Cwm Gwaun, Pembrokeshire, in accordance with local traditions.
Plygain are usually sung in the context of a church service and by many different groups, but unfortunately there are not enough plygain groups in Coventry to do such an event justice, so we will just be singing them as songs in the pub.
Here we are at St Finbarrs GAA Club last Sunday night where we sang some “plygain” (Welsh Christmas carols), a couple of sea shanties, and some of the classics. We had a brilliant time and a really warm welcome from a very lively crowd who had just come up from watching Wasps v Munster at the Ricoh! Being allowed to have a drink as we performed definitely helped with the voices – well we thought so anyway!
We had a much better day busking last Saturday than we did the Saturday before what with the combination of mild weather and a better spot to sing we raised £86 in comparison to £14 the week before. The total of £100 has been sent over to Coventry Peace House towards their night shelter. And we look forward to doing some more busking next year! (don’t we?). Unfortunately Mark has cut himself out of the picture while taking it selfie style.
