Eisteddfod's grand parade comes back in fine style

* All pictures by Mandy Jones 

The spectacular pageant of the Parade of Nations has made its long-awaited return to the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod.

The colourful cavalcade, sponsored by Everbright, included competitors from 19 countries on five different continents who were given a joyous welcome by delighted spectators who lined the streets in the picturesque town where Wales meets the world.

It was the first time parade has been held since 2019 with Covid taking its toll on the event for three years before this its triumphant return.

Nisha Guy, from Trinidad and Tobago, a cultural ambassador with the Soul Oasis group among a party of 40 from the West Indian islands.

She said: “I’ve just been blown away by the music and dance performances – everyone just really giving their all.

“It’s just been great to have some normalcy brought back to our lives after Covid and it’s been so emotional and so lovely as well, backstage and in the audience as well.

“The Parade is something special and I was singing as part of that and in the town square as well.”

Kiki Dari has been bringing groups of competitors from Djakarta, in Indonesia, for over 20 years and this year is with Labschool Kebayoran and she said: “I feel like Llangollen is my second home and I have missed it .

“I even came here two weeks before the festival to make sure everything was fine and it’s so nice to be back and be part of it all, especially the Parade.

“We have some traditional dancers with us and they have performed as part of the parade today.

“I hope to come many more times in future. I enjoy so much bringing Indonesian people here.”

Gurnoor Kaur, a young dancer from the Punjab, in India, was here for the first time in 2019, the last time the Eisteddfod was held as a full event and she said: “There have been lots of changes from last time but it is such an amazing event.

“It’s just such a great experience and so amazing, even the weather, and the people are so caring, respectful and show lots of love. They have really made us feel at home.

“It’s great to get to know about other cultures and other nations. That’s what makes Llangollen so special – I’d love to come again.”

It was a special moment for the Eisteddfod’s mastermind, Executive Producer Camilla King, who took over last year and hadn’t see it make its colourful way down Abbey Road from the International Pavilion to the town and back again in a kaleidoscopic river of colour.

She said: “It’s been fantastic and the Parade has been wonderful. It’s the first time it has been held since 2019 and the first time I’ve seen and experienced it and it has just been spectacular.

“Having no restrictions to worry about is absolutely wonderful and we’ve had lots of competitors from all over the world taking part, from the West Indies to the East Indies with groups from Trinidad and Tobago to Indonesia.

“We were a bit worried after Covid whether people would come back to the Eisteddfod, particularly from overseas but the response has been magnificent and seeing so many happy faces with people having fun is what the Eisteddfod is all about.

“Events like ours need support and so it’s been wonderful to see so many people along the route because Llangollen is unique. We have a wonderful message of peace and friendship.

“You see things here you won’t see anywhere else, meeting people you wouldn’t meet anywhere else and I’m very proud of that and most of the work is done to make all this happen is done by our volunteers who are phenomenal.”

Among those volunteers are Bill Kong and his wife, Solana, who have settled in the town after Bill first visited the Eisteddfod in 2013 and started volunteering two years later even though he had to fly 6,000 miles to do it.

He has now been here three years and is delighted to see the Eisteddfod back and he said: “I love the people here, the hwyl, the friendliness, the music and the countryside.

“The Parade is back now and that was really important because it really seals the whole connection between the festival and the town and that’s really important.

“It’s been going 76 years now and that not something to be taken lightly.”

* For more on Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod and its competitions and concerts as well as how to get to it and where to stay go to http://international-eisteddfod.co.uk/ or check out https://www.facebook.com/llangollen

Join Llangollen Parkrun as it marks NHS's 75th birthday

Llangollen's first Parkrun on June 17 had 249 people attending.

According to organisers, this figure was boosted by what are known as "Parkrun tourists" - people from all over the UK who like to attend a first run. 

On its second week  the run attracted 181 participants and last week 160 settling down for more local people.

A spokesperson said: "This week we are also celebrating the 75th anniversary of the NHS and our run director on the day is Janet Knight, who local people will know is a senior partner at the GP Practice at Llangollen Health Centre, supported by some of her colleagues from the practice which is actually an official Parkrun practice, to encourage people to volunteer, walk, jog or run at our event."

* Parkrun is now a regular weekly event, starting at 9am every Saturday, in which people can volunteer, walk, jog or run to improve their health and wellbeing, please see: home | Old Railway Trail parkrun, Llangollen | Old Railway Trail parkrun, Llangollen

Hundreds come out to watch Eisteddfod's big parade

llanblogger picture special

Llangollen Eisteddfod's traditional International Parade took place this afternoon.

Hundreds of onlookers packed into the town centre to watch and cheer the cavalcade of colour and music as it made its way from the Eisteddfod field, down Abbey Road, across the famous bridge and into the heart of Llangollen.

Flag-waving competitors and performers from across the globe were in the big line-up, led by town crier Chem.

Visiting Welsh Secretary says Eisteddfod is 'fantastic international day'

* Welsh Secretary David TC Davies meets, a limbo dancer from Trinidad and Tobago who will be competing with his group later today.

Llangollen Eisteddfod is a "fantastic international day right in the heart of Wales", according to Secretary of State for Wales, David TC Davies.

Mr Davies was spending the day at the Eisteddfod and meeting festival organisers.

Speaking to llanblogger, he said: "I am delighted to be here and have to admit it's not somewhere I've been before.

"My early impressions are that it is absolutely fantastic to be here and watching all the colourful performers walking past, like members of an African dance band and a group of dancers from Turkey, is great.

"It's a fantastic international day right in the heart of Wales and is very important that it continues."

He added: "In Wales we celebrate music, culture and dancing in a way I don't think happens anywhere else in the rest of the UK.

"My wife is Hungarian and used to be a Hungarian folk dancer and I know she really likes the fact that we celebrate these traditions in Wales and welcome visitors to Llangollen from all over the world."   

* In a round-up of other Eisteddfod activities this morning (Thursday) ...

* The Cantilon youth choir appear at the last minute in St Collen's.

A youth choir from Canada stepped in at the last moment to replace their counterparts from the Philippines when they were unable to make a recital at St Collen’s this afternoon (Thursday).

Members of Cantilon from Edmonton in Alberta cut short their lunch break to dash across town from the maes to the church and within minutes get right into their first number, a jaunty Irish folk tune.

They became unexpected substitutes for Kammerchor after the plane bringing them to the UK from Manila was cancelled.

St Collen’s is hosting a series of recitals by visiting choirs throughout the week and it was announced in church that Kammerchor still hoped to make the 2pm slot tomorrow (Friday) after the Delaware Choral Sholars from the USA perform at 1pm.

* Singers from Ysgol Tryfan in Bangor perform on the Globe Stage.

* Above and below: the Northern Lights dancers from Yorkshire take part in the children's folk dance competition.

* Youngsters take part in a circus skills session which was one of the activities on the maes this morning.

Search for hero who helped concert goer suffering cardiac arrest

 

* The packed audience for the Alfie Boe concert on Tuesday night.

A search has been launched for a heroic former paramedic who leapt into action after a concert-goer suffered a cardiac arrest.

The victim collapsed in the car park following the opening concert at Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod starring Alfie Boe and supergroup, Welsh of the West End.

The quick-thinking ex paramedic ran to the nearby rugby club and grabbed a defibrillator to perform CPR - cardio-pulmonary resuscitation.

It’s understood his heart was shocked back into life three times.

The Eisteddfod are keen to identify the hero of the hour and want to reward him with free concert tickets to the rest of the festival.

* Camilla King, Executive Producer of Llangollen Eisteddfod.

The incident happened on the car park field above the Eisteddfod Maes after 11pm and the response by the emergency services was exemplary, according to Eisteddfod Executive Producer Camilla King.

She said the man’s swift action was quickly followed up by the St John’s Ambulance staff on site who quickly had two paramedics, an ambulance crew and an operational commander on the scene.

An ambulance arrived at the scene not long after and took him to Wrexham Maelor Hospital where his condition was said to be stable.

She said: “A couple who had attended the concert were in the car park when the man collapsed and by an absolute miracle there was a couple nearby and the man is a former paramedic.

“He started immediate CPR  and was soon joined by our on-site St John’s team who also did a fantastic job.

“In the meantime he must have known that the nearby sports club had a defibrillator and he was able to get that into operation. It was very quick thinking on his part.

“There were so many people leaving the Alfie Boe concert that we were worried the ambulance might get held up but it also arrived quickly and so it was an excellent response by everyone.

“By the time the ambulance was taking him to the Maelor Hospital he was able to speak to his wife. It was a fantastic response all round and we’re very grateful to everyone concerned.

“I spoke to the man’s wife and it was good to hear that his condition was stable and we wish him a full and speedy recovery.

“We would very much like to be able to identify the man who reacted so brilliantly well and offer him our thanks and tickets to concerts of his choice for the rest of the week.

“The man’s family are understandably also keen to say thank you for his quick thinking which probably meant the difference between life and death. He was a real hero.”

According to St John Ambulance, the patient was handed over to the Welsh Ambulance Service NHS Trust who safely transported him to hospital.

Darren Murray, Head of Community Operations, said: ‘We are proud of the volunteers who responded quickly and delivered a high standard of care synonymous with St John Ambulance Cymru. We wish the patient all the best in their recovery.”

Poignant and moving concert was perfect for the Pavilion stage

* New Sinfonia orchestra and massed choir united for the concert.

The Eisteddfod Pavilion’s enormous stage was made for last night’s emotive and deeply moving concert, The White Flower Into the Light, which showed how the beauty of hope can be born from the ugliness and pain of war.

Its cavernous dimensions perfectly accommodated a massed choir of 200 voices and a wondrous orchestra who came together for a work of remembrance for the fallen of Srebrenica, Bosnia and Ukraine.

And their performance was also the very embodiment of the eisteddfod’s founding principles of international peace and friendship.

Music to touch the soul came from Karl Jenkins, Finzim Gjeilo and the traditions of Wales, Bosnia and the Ukraine.

This was poignantly driven by the north Wales-based New Sinfonia orchestra led by its resident conductor Robert Guy and, at one point, by Polina Horelova, a Ukrainian mother-of-four and musician who escaped the Russian invasion of her homeland to take refuge in this country.

In close partnership with New Sinfonia was Lleisiau Llan, a tremendous 200-strong choir of voices recruited and trained locally specially for this occasion and containing a number of refugees.

The piece which gave the concert its title, The White Flower, was penned by Sarajevo-born composer and guitarist Elvir Solak who was there to help present it along with Lejia Jusic, an accomplished musician also from Sarajevo.

The programme for the evening began with the deeply evocative White Flower and moved through the haunting The Rose by Gjeilo then was lightened somewhat by Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Edelweiss, written for the film Sound of Music, whose theme was the destructive power yet hope which war can bring. It was here that the choir’s powerful resonance first took command.

Elen Mair Roberts, a notable north Wales musical director, took over the conductor’s baton to lead New Sinfonia in the traditional Welsh piece Mil Harddach wyt na’r rhosyn gwyn.

Finzi’s Let us Garlands Bring followed before baritone Emyr Lloyd Jones presented three traditional folk songs including the ever-hopeful springtime note of It Was a Lover and His Lass.

Later in the programme came Karl Jenkins’ The Armed Man, A Mass for Peace and a choral suite comprising Agnus Dei, Benedictus, Hymn Before Action, Kyrie and Sanctus – all at once soaring and majestic and cataclysmic yet joyous thanks to the profound skills of the orchestra and the pieces’ interpretation by that marvellous choir.

Polina Horelova conducted the light-hearted yet still moving Ukraine River Song by Yakub, when a group of young dancers in traditional Ukrainian costume appeared amongst the audience to help illustrate the piece.

The evening was perfectly rounded off with the spine-tingling and hopeful World in Union with music by Holst arranged by Skarbek.

Round-up of action from Eisteddfod's first full day

llanblogger has been capturing some action from the first full day of the 2023 Llangollen Eisteddfod:

* The day began with a performance in Centenary Square of the Greek performing arts group Kyklos who are based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Entertainment by various groups will continue there each day of the Eisteddfod.

* The Eisteddfod's children's day traditionally features two morning concerts specially arranged for hundreds of primary school youngsters from across north Wales. This includes the Peace Message from the children of Llangollen to their counterparts across the world which was this year delivered in Welsh and English by pupils from Ysgol Dinas Bran in Llangollen. Amongst those performing this morning during the concerts was the Cantilon Chamber Choir from Canada.   

* Also on the entertainment bill for the children's concerts was a storytelling session on a dinosaur theme. This was accompanied by a trio of musicians from the New Sinfonia orchestra which will be performing in this evening's (Wednesday) concert in the Pavilion, entitled White Flower. This will also feature a choir of Ukrainian refugees.

* Above and two pictures below: throughout the week international choirs competing in the Eisteddfod are giving recitals at St Collen's Church. Today it was the turn of the Azusa Pacific University Choir from the USA who were last at the Eisteddfod in 2015. They will be competing in a number of choral competitions later this week.   

* Steffan Hughes, who appeared in Tuesday's evening concert alongside Alfie Boe with his group Welsh of the West End, sang on the Globe stage near the town end of the Eisteddfod field this afternoon, performing a number of hit numbers from hit musicals and film.