Robert Lloyd - a Sir Gar Blog of random news . . . and some Clecs!

  THE annual Llanelli Rotary Club Young Musician of the Year competition saw singers and instrumentalists battle it out at Greenfield Chapel in the town centre. The competition was the first stage in a national competition to find the Young Musician of the Year in both vocal and instrumental categories. Llanelli Rotary Club President Cerith Owens said: “Rotary International in Great Britain and Ireland believes it is highly important to encourage and develop creativity in young people and the young musician competition is one of a number of ways in which we can nurture talent. “The young musician competition in Llanelli has been running for nearly 10 years, with a short break for the coronavirus pandemic. During that time, we have been hugely entertained and impressed by the young talent on display in the two categories of the competition. “This year’s competition was of a very high standard and we would urge schools and music teachers across the area to pencil next autumn into the...

  Review: Meibion Elli at Greenfield Chapel, with special guests The Phil Harmonics and West End star Samuel Wyn-Morris.   LLANELLI male voice choir Meibion Elli celebrated their fifth anniversary with a special concert staged at Greenfield Chapel in the town centre. Meibion Elli choir are growing in numbers under the direction of D Eifion Thomas and accompanist Aled Maddock. The anniversary concert proved to be a memorable and inspiring evening of fine choral singing, mixed in with superb solo performances. Meibion Elli’s growing reputation for musical excellence was underscored by a programme of various musical styles which appealed to the large audience in Greenfield Chapel. John Thomas, David Williams (Dai Llansaint) and Alan Owen were the choir’s three featured soloists. Special mention must be made of the choir’s inspirational blockbuster performance of the Finale to Act 3 of Verdi’s Nabucco (The Slaves’ Chorus), with John Thomas featuring in the role of Zachariah. Barit...

The funeral of the man who was recognised as ‘The Voice’ of Parc y Scarlets, Stradey Park and Stebonheath will be held on Friday (April 17). Tributes to Monro Walters have been pouring in since his sudden death on Saturday, March 28. “His family have been very moved by the loving tributes that have been paid to Monro,” said his friend Robert Lloyd. “They would like to express their gratitude to everyone. The tributes to Monro have given them strength to get through this very difficult period.” Mr Walters was 69. He lived in Pwll. He is survived by his wife Maxine and children Gethin, Rhys and Rhiannon. The funeral on Friday April 17, takes the form of a public service at Greenfield Chapel, 11am, followed by private burial at Holy Trinity Church, Pwll at 12.30pm. “We are expecting a large crowd of mourners at the funeral as we say our farewells to Monro, a man universally acknowledged in Llanelli as a gentleman and all-round ‘good guy’,” said Mr Lloyd. The funeral service at G...

A gala concert to mark the centenary of the start of World War One is being held in Llanelli at the start of September. The concert is being staged by Llanelli Rotary Club in conjunction with the Royal British Legion and Loud Applause Productions. It takes place at 7pm on Saturday, September 6, at Greenfield Chapel in Llanelli town centre. The concert is in aid of the British Legion's Poppy Appeal in South West Wales. "This is a very worthwhile charity and one we are delighted to be supporting," said the President of Llanelli Rotary Club Hywel Bassett. "As a Rotary Club, we will soon be approaching our own 100th anniversary in Llanelli and we wanted to pay our own unique tribute to those who died during the war, those who were injured and those who took part, both at home and abroad. "The World War One 100th anniversary events throughout the country and abroad have touched all our hearts. "With that in mind, we hope to stage a fitting commemoration of t...

Review: Pendyrus Male Choir, Lleisiau’r Cwm, Samuel Morris, Andrew Pike and other soloists at Loud Applause charity concert staged at Greenfield Chapel, Llanelli, to raise funds for a new ultrasound scanning machine to diagnose prostate cancer at Prince Philip Hospital. They came, they saw, they sung and they conquered. It takes a brave group of choristers to venture into the choral heartland of Llanelli, home to so many top class choirs. But the men of Pendyrus Male Choir have never shown faint heart. More the 70-strong and with a solid contingent of younger choristers (the envy of other male voice choirs), they were paying only their second visit to Llanelli. Celebrating 90 years of singing in the Rhondda, they have a new lease of life under talented musical director Stewart Roberts. From the opening bars of Llanfair, they set their stall out for a packed house at Greenfield Chapel. It was male voice singing at its very best, with a repertoire which displayed the choir’s stre...

Côr Meibion Llanelli musical director Eifion Thomas conjured up the festive spirit for the choir’s ‘Sing Christmas’ concert staged at Greenfield Chapel, Llanelli. Mr Thomas organised a show which cleverly blended audience participation on a number of Carols and Christmas favourites with choral treats from Côr Meibion Llanelli and their guests, Côr Baroc and Parti Llwchwr. It was a Christmas cracker of an evening, with musical treats galore culminating in a rousing Hallelujah chorus. Mr Thomas went into the choir’s back catalogue to serve up Song Of Hope from the choir’s 1983 album and provided another gem in Trysor y Crud (The treasure of the manger), a song written by the aunt of BBC newsreader Huw Edwards. Bethlehem from the musical Martin Guerre (written by the team behind Les Miserables) was given a good airing, while a further treat was provided by ‘Sut Nadolig bu eleni?’ (What sort of Christmas will it be?), a song written by former chorister Bryn Davies, of Llwynhe...

An exciting £1,000 musical bursary prize – thought to be the biggest of its kind in Wales – will be awarded to a Trimsaran teenager on Saturday night (October 19). Megan Thomas has been picked as the first winner of the Gethin Hughes Memorial Bursary Scholarship. The prize celebrates the life of Gethin Hughes MBE, who was known as Llanelli’s ‘Mr Music’. Megan joined other bursary prize hopefuls at competition auditions for the prize. “She is a very worthy winner,” said the chairman of the judging panel, Eifion Thomas. Mr Thomas, musical director of Côr Meibion Llanelli and Côr Baroc, said the judges were impressed by the quality of the young musicians and singers who applied for the bursary. He added: “The bursary is being supported by a £1000 cash contribution by the Llanelli-based Jenkins Bakery and we are grateful for their support in helping talented youngsters continue their musical education.” Megan, 19, has just taken her place at the Royal Welsh College of Music an...

Brothers John and Paul Hooper return to Llanelli next week to present a recital of classical and contemporary music. They are both members of Her Majesty’s Band of the Irish Guards and accomplished musician in their own right. John is a previous winner of the Llanelli Star Young Musician of the Year and Paul a brass finalist of that competition and winner of the Cussons Soloist of the Year. They will be accompanied by Major Richard Gaudion of the Salvation Army. The proceeds of the recital will be for the local committee of Leukaemia research and the Ty Bryngwyn Hospice. With music by Mendelssohn, Elgar, Dvorak, Gordon Jacob and others, this will be feast of music for everyone. The recital will be at Greenfield Chapel on Thursday, October 17, at 7pm. Tickets are £4, available at the door on the evening.

An exciting £1,000 musical bursary prize will be awarded for the first time this month to honour the man known as Llanelli’s Mr Music, Gethin Hughes MBE. It is the biggest prize of its kind on offer in Wales and the aim is to find the very best young musical talent in Carmarthenshire. The prize is the brainchild of Cor Meibion Llanelli musical director Eifion Thomas, a close friend of the late Mr Hughes. “Gethin was a great pal and a long-serving accompanist for Cor Meibion Llanelli,” said Mr Thomas. “We travelled the world to concerts and festivals and Gethin was famous the world over for being a real character and a wonderful ambassador for Llanelli. “Gethin made an outstanding contribution to music in Llanelli and in Wales. It is wonderfully fitting that we should honour his memory and celebrate his life with a musical bursary prize. “Gethin cared very much about supporting and promoting youngsters on their musical careers. Hopefully, this new award will go a long way t...

The musical bursary fund set up to remember the man known as Llanelli’s Mr Music, Gethin Hughes MBE, is off to a flying start. The fund is already being backed by a £1,000 donation by the Llanelli-based Jenkins Bakery business. It received an extra shot-in-the-arm when the first Gethin Hughes Memorial Concert was held at Greenfield Chapel, Llanelli. “The concert was well attended and we reckon that we raised close to £1000 on the night,” said Richard Christopher, secretary of the Gethin Hughes Memorial Bursary Fund. “There was also a wonderful surprise for us on the evening as we received news from the elders of Triniti Chapel, the chapel where Gethin was organist and such a faithful member. “Gethin was one of the prime movers in the chapel’s Cymdeithas Glyd (cosy society) and the elders of Triniti have agreed to earmark money left over in the Cymdeithas fund for the musical bursary prize. “That sum of money comes to nearly £2000, so it is a massive boost for us in our first y...

An exciting £1,000 musical bursary prize will be launched next month (September) to honour the man known as Llanelli’s Mr Music, Gethin Hughes MBE. It will be the biggest prize of its kind on offer in Wales and the aim will be to find the very best young musical talent in Llanelli.  The prize is the brainchild of Cor Meibion Llanelli musical director Eifion Thomas, a close friend of the late Mr Hughes. "Gethin was a great pal and a long-serving accompanist for Cor Meibion Llanelli," said Mr Thomas. "We travelled the world to concerts and festivals and Gethin was famous the world over for being a real character and a wonderful ambassador for Llanelli. "Gethin made an outstanding contribution to music in Llanelli and in Wales. It is wonderfully fitting that we should honour his memory and celebrate his life with a musical bursary prize. "Gethin cared very much about supporting and promoting youngsters on their musical careers. Hopefully, this new awa...

My interview with the Rev David Jones, of Greenfield Baptist Church, Llanelli, conducted for the Llanelli Talking Newspaper for the Blind -  

The town of Llanelli, led by town and county civic dignitaries, will join the Hywel Girls' Choir (pictured above) and Hywel Boy Singers' in their traditional 'The Magic of Christmas' performance. In the beautiful surroundings of Greenfield Baptist Chapel, Llanelli, Director John Hywel Williams will lead the massed voices of the Hywel Girls' Choir and Hywel Boy Singers, the Llanelli Choral Society, soprano Rhiannon Herridge, pianist Jean Hywel and organist Huw Tregelles Williams in an evening of Christmas song, music and word. The performance, a tradition in the calendar of the town with popular Christmas music and carols blended with hearty congregational massed singing, promises to greet the Christmas season with a resounding welcome. Programme highlights will include Once in Royal Davids City, O Holy Night, Ding Dong Merrily on High, Adestes Fideles, great highlights from exciting choruses from world oratorios such as Handel's Messiah ...to name but a few. The...

Carmarthenshire audiences will have the opportunity of welcoming the Christmas season in true musical spirit at the popular “The Magic of Christmas” concert. The musical baton of conductor John Hywel Williams MBE (pictured above) will bring together the massed voices of the Hywel Girls’ Choir & Hywel Boy Singers, Llanelli Choral Society, tenor Joshua Mills, soprano Rhiannon Herridge, organist Huw Tregelles Williams and accompanist Jean Hywel for an exciting and mixed evening of classical music, Christmas carols and Christmas readings. The evening, with popular Christmas music and carols blended with hearty congregational massed singing, promises to greet the Christmas season with a resounding welcome. Programme highlights will include popular Once in Royal David’s City, O Holy Night, Ding Dong Merrily on High, Adestes Fideles to name but a few and will also feature a selection of organ classics by Huw Tregelles Williams and Christmas readings by Jeremy Hywel Wlliams. “There is no o...