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Compact Disc
Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album
Comes in a fine gatefold case with extensive liner notes by Gareth Bonello and beautiful photography by Kerme Lamare
Includes unlimited streaming of ‘Sai-thaiñ ki Sur
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
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about
Alaw werin draddodiadol Gymreig a chafodd ei drawsffurfio'n emyn dôn a'i ail-enwi'n 'Bryniau Cassia' gan y Methodistiaid Calfinaidd Cymreig.
A traditional Welsh folk song that was adapted by Welsh Calvinistic Methodists and re-named to become the hymn tune 'Bryniau Cassia' (Khasi Hills).
A slight return here to the tune that tells the whole tale; ‘Wel bachgen Ifanc Ydwyf’, or is it ‘Bryniau Cassia’? Here is the folk song in the original Welsh, the tale of a young lad with land and riches, but sadly, nobody to love. A simple folk song that was adopted and embellished by the Calvinistic Methodists and turned into the hymn that bears the name of the Khasi Hills in Welsh. Both Benedict Hynñiewta and Meban Lyngdoh were familiar with this tune by the time we set to recording it at Merliham Arrangements in November 2018. Dr Mebanlamphang Lyngdoh is a lecturer in music at Martin Luther Christian University in Shillong and completed a PhD on the Duitara. It was Meban that gave me my first Duitara lesson back in 2017, patiently taking me through 20 or so indigenous rhythms that give the instrument its distinctive Khasi character. Meban is a phenomenal musician that enjoys experimenting with different styles and I really love the bluesy tone he sets with his playing on this track. I am so grateful to Meban for his tutelage, because without his help I would not understand the Duitara half as well as I do and so I would understand so much less of Khasi culture as a result. Learning the instrument has deepened my understanding of Khasi music, the oral tradition and has allowed me to connect with musicians throughout Meghalaya without the need to speak each other’s languages. I am deeply indebted to Meban and to my other tutors, Risingbor Kurkalang and Rani Maring for this great gift.
lyrics
Wel Bachgen Ifanc Ydwyf *English Translation below*
Wel, bachgen ifanc ydwyf,
bron un-ar-hugain oed,
Os ydwi'n llac fy ngafael
'rwy'n stedi ar fy nhroed;
'Rwy'n berchen tai a thiroedd
a gwartheg lawer iawn,
A defaid ar y mynydd
a phedair tas o fawn:
Mawn, mawn, a phedair tas o fawn,
A defaid ar y mynydd
a phedair tas o fawn.
'Rwy'n debyg i'r pysgotwr
sy'n rhodio glan y llyn,
'Rwy'n gweled pysgod lawer
ond yn methu dal yr un;
'Rwy'n debyg i'r golomen
yn pigo'r gwenith gwyn,
A honno mor ddiniwed
na wnaiff hi ddrwg i ddim.
Dim, dim,
na wnaiff hi ddrwg i ddim,
A honno mor ddiniwed
na wnaiff hi ddrwg i ddim.
Now, I am a young boy
Now, I am a young boy,
almost twenty-one years old,
If I have a slack grip,
I am steady on my feet;
I am owner of houses and lands
and very many cattle,
And sheep on the mountain
and four ricks of peat:
Peat, peat, and four ricks of peat,
And sheep on the mountain
and four ricks of peat.
I am like the fisherman
who walks the bank of the lake,
I see many a fish
but I fail to catch any;
I am like the dove
pecking at the white wheat,
And she so innocent
she will do no harm to anything.
Anything, anything,
she will do no harm to anything,
And she so innocent
she will do no harm to anything.
credits
from
‘Sai-thaiñ ki Sur,
released May 28, 2020
Recordiwyd ym Merliham Arrangements, Shillong, Meghalaya, mis Ebrill 2019.
Recorded at Merliham Arrangements, Shillong, Meghalaya, April 2019.
Gareth Bonello - Gitâr/Guitar
Meban Lyngdoh - Duitara ac offerynnau taro/ Duitara & Percussion
Benedict Hynniewta - Ffliwt/Flute
Peter Dkhar - Periannydd/Engineer
Llion Robertson - Cymysgu/Mixing
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