St David's Day concert a big hit at Ffwrnes Theatre, Llanelli

St David’s Day Concert at Ffwrnes. A Loud Applause production featuring The Three Welsh Tenors, the combined Côr Meibion Llanelli (Llanelli Male Choir) and Bridgend Male Choir, Parti Llwchwr, compere Garry Owen.

It may be that the TV company next door to Llanelli’s swish new Ffwrnes Theatre missed a trick by not televising this St David’s Day concert.
Tickets were like hot cakes and those lucky enough to get a seat were rewarded with a dazzling evening full of Welsh passion and hwyl.
This was an evening worthy of recording for posterity and a great showcase for Wales as the land of song.
The Three Welsh Tenors - Aled Hall, Alun Rhys-Jenkins and Rhys Meirion – never disappoint, but they were never going to be able to steal the show in the face of stiff competition from the combined choirs of Côr Meibion Llanelli (Llanelli Male Choir) and Bridgend Male Choir.
They teamed up with the choirs for the finale of Tydi a Roddaist – ‘Amens’ which provided a spine-tingling climax to a great evening’s entertainment.
The scene was set at the outset with the combined male choirs ticking off first-half crowd-pleasers – Isis and Osiris, Speed Your Journey, You’ll Never Walk Alone and A-men.
The ladies of Parti Llwchwr made sure ‘girl power’ was heard with Pan Fyddo’r Nos, Dysg i mi garu Cymru and Calon Lan (The Rose).
Côr Meibion Llanelli’s ‘solo spot featured a well-known composition by the choir’s musical director Eifion Thomas, Cri yn y nos. For good measure, they also weighed in with Y Tangnefeddwyr, always something of a show-stopper in the hands of Mr Thomas and his choristers.
Bridgend Male Choir were under the baton of Rhiannon Williams-Hale, who also doubles up as the regular accompanist for Côr Meibion Llanelli.
They served up a Matt Monroe classis in Portrait of my love and gave a Welsh twist to the ever-popular Casatchok.
Parti Llwchwr’s second-half appearance featured Ymlaen a’r Gan, Unwaith eto Nghymru annwyl and Lausanne.
In between, Messrs Hall, Rhys-Jenkins and Meirion served up their exceptional repertoire of classics and cheeky chappie humour.
For the finale, the combined choirs were moving like a well-oiled juggernaut, singing Yfory, Llanfair, Myfanwy and Tywi a Roddaist.
The BBC journalist and presenter Garry Owen was the amiable host for the evening and the musical accompaniment was provided by Caradog Williams, Rhiannon Wiliams-Hale and Stephanie Bailey.
Concert promoter Cerith Owens was delighted that the concert “captured the public’s imagination.”
It would have been nice for the whole thing to have been captured for posterity by the TV cameras, but you can’t have everything. Besides, there’s always next year!

Robert Lloyd

Photo: Rhiannon Williams-Hale conducts the massed voices at the St David’s Day concert at Ffwrnes Theatre, Llanelli.