Rywsut-rywfodd

Weithiau dw i’n meddwl bod fy nghasgliad o offeryn cerdd yn dipyn bach rhy fawr. Mae gen i pymtheg o offeryn - dau gitâr (gitâr clasurol a gitâr tannau dur), pum chwiban tun, dau chwiban isel, ffliwt, clarinét, recorder, harmonica a dau ocarina. Dw i’n gallu chwarae nhw i gyd mwy neu lai, heblaw y ffliwt, ond dw i’n canolbwyntio ar y gitâr a’r chwibanau ar hyn o bryd. Yn ffodus mae y mwyafrif ohonyn nhw yn eitha bach, felly does dim problem dod â lle iddyn nhw.

Gléasanna ceoil

Uaireanta tá mé ag smaoineamh go bhfuil mo bhailiúchán de gléasanna ceoil beagán ro mhór. Tá cúig gléasanna deag agam - dhá ghiotár (giotár clasaiceach agus giotár le téad chruach), cúig feadóige stáin, dhá fheadóg íseal, feadóg mhór, cláirnéid, fliúit Shasanach, orgán béil agus dhá ocarina. Is féidir liom an t-iomlán acu a sheinm a bheag nó a mhór, ach bím ag díriú ar an fheadóg stáin, an fheadóg íseal agus an giotár ar faoi láithir. Níl an chuid is mó de mo ghléasanna go ro mhór go hádhúil, mar sin de is féidir liom áiteanna a lorg dóibh.

Musical instruments

Sometimes I think that my collection of musical instruments is a bit too large. I currently have 15 instruments - two guitars (a classical one and a steel-string one), five tin whistles, two low whistles, a flute, a clarinet, a recorder, a harmonica and two ocarinas. I can more or less play all of them, with the exception of the flute, but I’m concentrating on the guitar and whistles at the moment. Fortunately most of them at fairly small, so finding places to keep them is not a problem.

Nos Sadwrn canais mewn cyngerdd gyda’r côr meibion yn Woodingdean, tref fach ger Brighton. Cyrhaeddais yno mewn amser, ond yn anffodus, es i hollol ar goll ar y ffordd o’r stop bws i’r eglwys lle cafodd y cyngerdd ei gynnal. Ar ôl disgyn o’r bws, sylweddolais mod i’n yn y lle anghywir. Ro’n i’n nabod roedd yr eglwys ar ffordd o’r enw Ridgeway ond doedd dim ond syniad amwys ‘da fi lle roedd honna. Felly cerddais yn ôl i fyny’r bryn yn chwilio am y Ridgeway. Pan cyrhaeddais ar ben y bryn o’r diwedd heb ddod o hyd i’r Ridgeway neu’r eglwys, es i i fyny ac i lawr pob un o’r ffyrdd hyn cyn i mi ddod o hyd i rywun i ofyn cyfarwyddiadau amdano. Dywedodd ef wrthaf lle roedd y Ridgeway a meddyliais fyddwn i’n cyrraedd i’r eglwys cyn bo hir.

Felly ro’n i’n ar y ffordd gywir, o’r diwedd, ond ar ben anghywir hi. Felly cerddais i lawr y ffordd, a nid ffordd fyr roedd hi. Pan cyrhaeddais i’r ben arall heb weld yr eglwys, meddyliais wrtho fy hun mod i wedi blino, yn wlyb dros ben - roedd hi’n bwrw glaw trwm trwy’r amser - ac mae’r cyngerdd wedi dechrau yn barod, felly mae’n well ‘da fi mynd adref. Ond yna weles i’r eglwys, es i mewn, a llithrais i mewn sedd yng nghefn hyd at yr egwyl - roedd yr hanner cyntaf bron wedi gorffen hyd hynny. Dyma’r tro cyntaf mod i wedi clywed y côr fel aelod o’r cynulleidfa a swniodd yn wych.

Ces i canu yn ail hanner y cyngerdd o leiaf.

Cynghorodd ein arweinydd mod i’n gorfod cael lifft i gyngherddau yn y dyfodol rhag ofn i mi cyrraedd yn edrych fel ‘llygoden wedi ei boddi’. Cyngor da! Dod â’r map byddai yn syniad da hefyd.

Luchóg báite

Oíche Shatharn chan mé i gceolchoirm le cór Breatnach i Woodingdean, baile beag i aice le Brighton. Shroich mé ansin in am, ach ar an drochuair, chuaigh mé ar seachrán idir stad na mbus agus an eaglais cá raibh an cheolchoirm ar siúil. I ndiaidh an mbus a fhágáil, shíl mé go raibh mé san áit mícheart. Bhí fios agam go raibh an eaglais ar bóthar dar bh’ainm an Ridgeway, ach ní raibh mé cinnte cá raibh an bóthar sin. Mar sin de shiúl mé air ais suas an cnoc agus mé ag lorg an Ridgeway. Nuair a shroich mé ar bharr cnoic gan tar ar an Ridgeway nó an eaglais, chuaigh mé suas agus síos gach bóthar ansin roimh tháinig mé ar duine agus chuir mé faisnéis an bhealaigh air. Dúirt sé liom cá raibh an Rideway agus shíl go shroichfinn mé ann gan mhoill.

Raibh mé ar an bóthar ceart ar deireadh, ach ag barr an cnoic in áit bun an cnoic, cá raibh an eaglais. Mar sin de shiúl mé síos an bóthar, agus ní raibh sé bóthar gearr. Nuair a tháinig mé ag bun an cnoic gan an eaglais a fheiceáil, dúirt mé liom féin go raibh mé tuirseach agus fliuch go craiceann - bhí sé ag cur báisteach an t-am ar fad - agus go mbeidh an cheolchoirm ag tosú cheana, agus rachaidh mé abhaile anois. Agus ansin, chonaic mé an eaglais, chuaigh mé isteach agus shuigh mé síos ag cúl na lucht féachana - bhí an chéad leath thart faoin am sin. Sin é a chéad uair atá mé an cór a chluinstin mar ball na lucht féachana agus bhí sé go hiontach.

Ar a laghad chan mé sa dara leath.

Dúirt ár stiúrthóir liom gur cheart dom síob a fháil agus mé ag dúl chúig cheolchoirmeacha as seo amach, nó tiocfaidh mé ann ag féachaint mar luchóg báite. Comhairle mhaith! Mapa a thógáil bhiodh smaoineamh maith freisin.

Drowned rat

On Saturday evening I sang in a concert with the Welsh choir in Woodingdean, a small town near Brighton. I arrived there on time, but unfortunately got completely lost between the bus stop and the church where the concert was taking place. After getting of the bus I realised that I was in the wrong place. I knew that the church was on a road called the Ridgeway but only had a vague idea where that was. So I marched back up the hill looking for the Ridgeway. When I finally arrived at the top of the hill without finding the Ridgeway or the church, I went up and down all the roads there before finding someone to ask for directions. He told me where was the Ridgeway and I thought that I’d soon be arriving at the church.

I was on the right road at last, but at the wrong end of it. So I off I went down the road, and it wasn’t a short road either. When I finally arrived at the other end without seeing the church, I thought to myself I’m tired, soaked - it was raining heavily all this time - and the concert will have already started, so I might as well go home. But then I saw the church, went in and slipped into a seat at the back until the interval - the first half was almost over by then. This was the first time I’d heard the choir as part of the audience and it sounded great.

At least I got to sing in the second half of the concert.

Our conductor advised me to get a lift to future concerts so that I don’t turn up looking like a drowned rat. Good advice! Taking a map would also be a good idea.

Yn ddiwethar dechreuais mynd i sesiwn cerddoriaeth mewn tafarn yn Rottingdean, pentref ger Brighton, pob nos Sul. Rhwng deg o gerddorwyr sy’n chwarae yn y sesiwn ‘ma ac maen nhw’n i gyd yn dalentog iawn. Mae’r mwyafrif ohonynt yn chwarae dau neu fwy offeryn cerddoriaeth yn dda, ac mae rhan ohonynt yn canu hefyd. Dan ni’n chwarae alawon o Iwerddon yn bennaf, a dw i’n nabod cryn dipyn onhonynt, ond llawer mwy o ymarfer sy’n angen cyn i mi gallu chwarae’r alawon yn gyflym ac yn dda heb gamgymeriadau. Dim ond chwarae’r darnau mod i’n gallu chwarae ydw i.

Dw i’n ceisio dysgu mwy o alawon wrth fy nghlustiau heb wrando ar y gerddoriaeth. Sgil defnyddiol iawn yw ‘ny, a gobeithio bydda i’n gallu dysgu bron unrhyw alawon ar ôl wrando arno tipyn o weithiau. Ar hyn o bryd dw i’n gorddibynnu ar gerddoriaeth ysgrifenedig. Dw i’n gallu dysgu caneon fel ‘ny yn barod, ond mae alawon symlach ‘da nhw.

Seisiúin Ceoil

Le déanaí thosaigh mé páirt a ghlachadh i seisiún ceoil i dteach tabharine i Rottingdean, sráidbhaile in aice le Brighton gach oíche Dhomhnaigh. Bíonn thart ar deich daoine ag sheinm sa seisúin seo agus is ceoltoirí ildánach iad - bíonn an chuid is mó acu ag sheinm dhá uirlis ceoil nó níos mó, agus bíonn chuid acu ag canadh freisin. Bíonn muid ag seinm poirt as Éirinn go príomha, agus tá aithne agam ar go leor acu, ach tá orm i bhfad níos mó cleachtadh riomh gur féidir liom iad a sheinm go mhaith, go tapaigh agus gan botúin. Níl ach seinm na páirt gur féidir liom atá mé.

Bhainím triail as páirt a fhoghlaim gan feachaint ar an ceol. Is scil an úsáideach sin agus tá súil agam go mbeidh mé in ann páirt a fhoghlaim i ndiaidh iad a chloisteáil cúpla uair. Ar faoi láithair bhainím an iomarca úsáid as ceol scríofa agus mé páirt a fhoghlaim. Is féidir liom amhrain a fhoghlaim trí mó cluais, ach bíonn fonn níos simplí acu.

Music sessions

Recently I’ve started going to an Irish music session at a pub in Rottingdean, a village not far from Brighton every Sunday evening. About ten or so people go to this session and they are all very talented musicians. Most of them play two or more instruments and some of them sing as well. We play mostly tunes from Ireland and I know quite a few of them, though a lot more practice is needed before I can play quickly and well without mistakes. I just play the bits I can.

I’m trying to learn more tunes by ear without looking at the music, a very useful skill which will hopefully develop over time until I can pick up more or less any new tune after hearing it only a couple of times - I tend to rely too much on written music at the moment. I can already do this for songs, though they tend to have simpler melodies.

Neithiwr canodd y Côr Meibion Cymraeg Brighton mewn cyngerdd yn Lindfield ger Haywards Heath i ddathlu Dydd Gŵyl Dewi. Roedd tua 150 o bobl yn y cynulleidfa, yn gynnwys cryn dipyn o Gymry, a gwerthfawrogon nhw ein canu a’r gerddoriaeth a ganodd un o’r telynoresau arferol yn fawr. Codon dros mil o bunnau ar gyfer hosbis leol hefyd.

Lá Naomh David

Aréir sheinn an Cór Breatnach Brighton i gceolchoirm i Lindfield in aice le Haywards Heath, Lá Naomh David a cheiliúradh. Bhí 150 de de lucht féachana ann, lena n-áirítear cuid mhaith Breatnaigh, agus bhain siad an-sult as ár amhránaíocht agus ceol na cláirseiche a sheinn aon de ár cláirseachaí féiltiúil. Bhailigh muid níos mó na míle punt ar mhaithe le hospice áitiúla.

St. David’s Day

The Brighton Welsh Male Voice Choir gave a concert last night at Lindfield near Haywards Heath to celebrate St. David’s Day. The audience of 150 or so, which included quite a few Welsh people, seemed to really appreciate our singing, and also the harp playing of one of our regular harpists. We also raised over £1000 for a local hospice.